The USOC Executive Board met today at the Denver global airport and afterwards senior leaders met the press in a conference call.
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Salt Lake City, which hosted the 2002 Winter Games, is planning to put forth another bid for 2026 – but if LA gets the nod, the Utah capital might have to wait longer before the USOC agrees to submit another U.S. bid.
“We continue to think that a U.S. bid for the 2024 Games can be successful”, USOC chairman Larry Probst said in a statement Wednesday.
Scott Blackmun to work with Los Angeles to further explore the viability of a bid for the 2024 Olympic Games.
If the United States is going to bid for the 2024 Olympics, that bid will come from Los Angeles.
Blackmun characterized the results as “remarkable and very encouraging”.
Boston’s bid was ended last month after wallowing public support forced Mayor Marty Wash to decline his original offer to sign a host city agreement that would have backed the bid with tax payer’s dollars.
“Mayor Garcetti has already indicated that he understands that”. Following an introduction by President Barack Obama in front of a crowd of 62,388, the Los Angeles School of Gymnastics team comprised of over 35 of its best athletes kicked off the event as they tumbled down the red carpet on live television from all disciplines of the Summer and Special Olympics to include Rhythmic Gymnasts, Men’s Gymnastics, Women’s Artistic Gymnasts and Tumbling athletes reclaimed the attention that dated back to the 1984 Summer Olympic Games.
Earlier this week, city officials said the proposed budget for the Summer Games would be $4.1 billion, plus a $400 million contingency. “So we feel really good on the public support issue”.
“We’ve said in the past that we’d love to have this wrapped up by the end of August and that’s still our goal”, Blackmun said. He emphasized that they have all sent in letters of support.
The move means the stadium will not be ready as planned for the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan, but Tokyo organizers and the IOC said they are confident it will be built in time for the games. One of the interesting thing about the polling was that not only did we have 81 percent support but we didn’t have very many people who opposed the Games.
“There are some complicated issues in the discussion”, Blackmun said.
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Pound also said the Boston mess would not hurt an American bid by the time delegates vote in two years. “It left a great legacy for the city”. Poll numbers there had languished around 40% all spring.
