Situated on either side of the Bosphorous Straits, Istanbul presents a stunning spectacle of East becoming West, Asia becoming Europe. Surrounded by water and by history, Istanbul possesses a setting as spectacular as the Olympic Games themselves. It is not only one of the most breathtaking cities of the world, but it has a claim to universality that coincides with the objectives and values of Olympism. It is offering the Games something that is already the Olympic Movement's by right.