ODESA, MAY, 26th, 2009, CONTEXT-PRICHERNOMORIE – Mayor of Odesa, Eduard Gurvits stated the city intended to dispute the UEFA’s decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Context-Prichernomorie correspondent reports.

Eduard Gurvits stated it today, 26 May talking to journalists.

“We really do not believe UEFA’s decision saying Odesa will not be included into the list of EURO 2012 host-cities, as two days before that at the sitting in the Cabinet UEFA Commission’s decision was announced saying Odesa was on the second place among the six Ukrainian possible host-cities. And there was n doubt it would be included into the list of the EURO 2012 host-cities. Nevertheless two days later such a decision was made. I addressed the UEFA and the FIFA Presidents with letters in which I expressed my bewilderment and disagreement with the decision taken. I addressed the ambassadors of the UEFA countries in order they could stimulate logical solution of this problem and our sister-cities as well”, — Mayor said.

“We are considering a number of measures, we could take. One of them is an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne. There are some legal difficulties but we ar4e considering them”, — Mr. Gurvits said.

“Today I want to write a letter to Michel Platini with a request to come to Odesa. Last Autumn I met him, then the UEFA President told me UEFA would define the list of the host cities only in compliance with the decisions of UEFA Comissions and his personal impression. He promised to go round the twelve cities. This was not done. I would much more trust Platini’s impression, then Mr. Surkis’s system of argumentation of actions. The embarrassing fact itself of that illogical decision being quite beyond the normal system of relationships between the host-cities and the UEFA must be reconsidered. I hope this will be done”, — Mr. Mayor added.

As Context-Prichernomorie reported before, 13 May in Bucharest President of European Football Union, Michel Platini announced UEFA’s decision saying Odesa was not included into the list of host-cities of EURO 2012 Football Championship. According to a number of media, Platini declared the final decision of the UEFA is as follows: the cities of Ukraine and Poland divided 4x4. Ukrainian host-cities will be: Kyiv, Lviv, Donetsk, and Kharkiv.