Osaka vows to continue Olympic battle

Japan's western metropolis of Osaka has vowed to press ahead with its campaign to host the 2008 Summer Olympics after being selected as one of five cities on the official list of candidates.

"The real battle has yet to begin," Osaka Mayor Takafumi Isomura told a news conference late on Monday after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced its decision in Switzerland.

"I feel Osaka has made an excellent bid. What we have to do now is catch our breath and move forward," media quoted the mayor as saying.

The IOC's executive board chose Beijing, Toronto, Osaka, Paris and Istanbul to compete for the right to hold the 2008 Summer Games.

Bangkok, Havana, Kuala Lumpur, Seville and Cairo failed to make it to the next stage of the bidding process.

Isomura said Osaka would have to work hard to sell itself.

"All of the cities are big rivals. But we need to promote our name internationally as we're not as well-known as our competitors," he said.

The winning bid is to be announced next July at an IOC congress in Moscow.

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