Rome will not make 2020 Olympic bid

Rome is not in a position to bid for the 2020 Olympic Games as the government cannot provide the necessary financial guarantees, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti said Tuesday. Speaking at a news conference in the Italian capital, Monti said his government would not sign a letter required by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from each of the bidding cities. We cannot make a financial commitment that could severely weigh on Italy in an unpredictable way in the coming years,' dpa quoted Monti as saying. We've already asked Italians to make sacrifices,' the premier said, referring to tough austerity measures, including tax hikes introduced by his government and aimed at staving off a default by Italy on its public debt repayments.