Michael Saul has apparently never been to Shea Stadium, for if he had, I don't know how he could write the following- "Shea is ideally suited for baseball, not track and field..." Shea Stadium is hideously designed for baseball. And football. And any other sport you can think of, save the sport of dynamiting obsolete structures.

O, Shea can you see

... as Olympics plan B?

By MICHAEL SAUL
DAILY NEWS CITY HALL BUREAU

With less than a month to go in the high-stakes competition for the 2012 Olympic Games, New York's chances of landing the world's most prestigious sporting event are dwindling.

Last week, a little-known state panel summarily rejected the proposed West Side stadium, the centerpiece of the city's Olympic bid.

The dramatic defeat left New York's Olympic officials reeling - and reluctantly dusting off an old backup plan to use Shea Stadium as an alternate site.

The bid committee first floated Shea as a backup when the city competed to become the U.S. nominee for the 2012 Games.

The committee's attention is now focused on whether that option can be revived, with an announcement expected by tomorrow.

But even before New York's Olympic stadium plans collapsed, observers predicted Paris would get the Games.

So, what, exactly, are New York's chances?

"Paris is the bid to beat," said Robert Livingstone, an expert on the Olympic bidding process who runs the GamesBids.com Web site. "[Still,] it's very possible Paris will get beaten because often underdogs win."

In the last two competitions for the Summer Games, the city with the best technical bid ultimately did not win.

But Livingstone said he's doubtful an alternative stadium could do the trick.

"If they use an alternate, that might save face, but I think that's suicide for the bid because it completely changes the plan," he said.

"The plan that they [had was] a great one," added Livingstone, referring to the rejected West Side stadium.

New York is competing with Paris, London, Madrid and Moscow. The International Olympic Committee will select the 2012 host city by secret ballot at a July 6 meeting in Singapore.

Livingstone and other observers said there's no doubt New York's bid is on "life support."

Regardless of the long odds, Jay Carson, a spokesman for the city's bid, remained upbeat.

"Despite the setback last week, everyone continues to work to find a way to ensure that New York's bid can continue and be successful," he said.

NYC2012 officials also urged supporters of the Games to participate in the filming today of a promotional video pitching New York to the IOC.

Volunteers are being asked to go to Wall and William Sts. in lower Manhattan this morning dressed in business attire to be used as extras.

In the afternoon, another filming will take place at Gigino's Restaurant on Battery Place in Manhattan, where extras should dress casually.

A third shoot is scheduled for tomorrow in Brooklyn Heights.

WHERE ELSE COULD WE HOLD THE CERMONIES?

GIANTS STADIUM

Pros:

• The Giants are planning to build a brand new stadium and may be willing to discuss the possibility of constructing it with an Olympic conversion in mind.

• Security is always a major issue, especially at the Games' marquee venue, and the Meadowlands would be relatively easy to secure.

  Cons:

• and closing ceremonies for NYC2012 in New Jersey is not what bid officials had in mind.

• Transportation would be a tad cumbersome, and that's being diplomatic.

  YANKEE STADIUM

  If New York is to get the 2012 Olympics, it would need to find a new stadium for the opening and closing ceremonies. Here are some possibilities:

  Pros:

• Yankee Stadium has name recognition.

• Public transportation is good and other competitions would be held in the general area.

  Cons:

• Baseball stadiums and Olympic stadiums are two different animals, and it's unclear whether George Steinbrenner - an Olympics booster - will want Olympic folks messing with his boys' field.

• It's a bit far from the Olympic Village.

  SHEA STADIUM

  Pros:

• NYC2012 submitted Shea as a backup facility in its bid to become the U.S. nominee for the 2012 Games.

• Transportation is excellent and it's not too far from the Olympic Village.

• The International Olympic Committee likes venues to be clustered together, and there would be many competitions taking place in that part of Queens. TV would have a spectacular view of the Manhattan skyline.

  Cons:

• The leaders of the bid committee have spent the past several years telling New Yorkers that the site was untenable and really never an option.

• Shea is ideally suited for baseball, not track and field - which the West Side stadium would have housed.