Germany to bid for 2024 Olympics

Germany will submit a bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) announced.

The DOSB presidium agreed unanimously Tuesday to submit a bid for the 2024 Olympics with the candidates either being Berlin or Hamburg. The DOSB also plans to bid for the 2028 Olympics, if the 2024 bid is unsuccessful, reports Xinhua.

"The Olympics and Paralympics are the most important event for German sport," DOSB president Alfons Hoermann said.

The final candidate will be elected March 21, 2015, by the DOSB general assembly.

Until now, there are no official candidates for the 2024 Olympics. However, the US, Istanbul, Doha, Paris and Rome have been named as possible bidders. The candidate for the Olympics will be elected by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 2017.

Germany has hosted the Summer Olympics in 1936 and 1972. While the 1936 Berlin Games were abused by the Nazi regime of Adolf Hitler, the 1972 Munich Games were overshadowed by the killings of Israeli athletes.

Germany's last bid, for the 2018 Winter Olympics, was rejected via a local referendum in Munich. This may also happen to the upcoming bids as Berlin and Hamburg are planning referendums as soon as a candidate will be picked in March.