Ahmadinejad Wants Games Invite, Despite Logo Issue

By JTA May 18, 2012

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad now wants to attend the 2012 London Olympics, despite last year saying that the summer games’ jagged multi-colored lingo resembled the word Zion and was therefore “racist.”

Despite his desire, Ahmadinejad said on Thursday that British authorites had “problems” with hosting him, according to IRNA, his country’s official news agency.

“I would like to be among Iranian athletes in the 2012 London Olympics to support them but they [the host country] have problems with that,” IRNA quoted him as saying.

About 50 Iranian athletes have qualified to take part in the games, according to IRNA.

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO