Qatar has announced that Doha is a candidate to host the 2020 Olympics after the International Olympic Committee acceded to its request to submit a bid that proposes shifting the event from the summer to the autumn.

Doha had previously bid to host the 2016 Games but the IOC gave it short shrift because it was proposing to stage the event in October to avoid the searing summer heat in Qatar when conditions would pose a health risk for athletes.

The Qatar Olympic Committee asked the IOC if a change in dates was acceptable and following an IOC board meeting Qatar Olympic officials were given the go-ahead to enter their bid.

Next year's Olympics in London take place between July 27 and August 12. Qatar is proposing to host the Games between September 20 and October 20. The 2000 Sydney Games were staged in mid to late September, although the IOC is concerned about the Olympics clashing with other sporting events such as the start of the European football season.

Qatar last year won the bidding for the 2022 World Cup, having persuaded Fifa that its air-conditioned stadia would offset the problems of high temperatures in June and July, the months that football's prestige tournament is traditionally played. But other countries have complained that staging the tournament in Qatar will be a drain on travelling spectators.

Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, secretary-general of the QOC, said: "We appreciate the understanding shown by the IOC and we have listened and learned from our 2016 attempt to bid for the Games.

"We know that it is imperative that we guarantee ideal conditions for athletes, support staff, technicians and spectators, and ensure events are scheduled appropriately for all stakeholders and that is what we will do."

Doha will inject some badly-needed impetus to the IOC's 2020 bidding competition. The IOC has become accustomed to picking from a long list of bidding cities, but with the closing date of September 1 just days away, only Rome, Istanbul, Madrid and Tokyo are declared runners, far fewer than in years past. The US Olympic Committee earlier this week ruled out a 2020 bid, and South Africa has also said it will not compete.

Doha's announcement of its bid kicks off a two-year campaign by the Gulf state which is likely to mirror the heavy promotion of its 2022 World Cup campaign during which Qatar heavily outspent its rivals. That is likely to cause some concern in the IOC, which tightened its bidding rules.

The Qatar World Cup bid has also been the subject of some controversy, but Qatar has always insisted that its bidding tactics were above board.

The IOC's decision on the venue for the 2020 Olympics will be taken in Buenos Aires in September 2013.