Chicago's Bid for the 2016 Olympic Games

[The_Admiral]

"Los Angeles Olympics" just feels right, and I'd rather let it be their problem.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

I'm for no more Olympics being held in the United States. We have them in this country far too enough and I'm still waiting to see a tangible benefit of doing so.

In fact, I'm for no more Olympics period until the entire set of financial and infrastructural expectations. It seems most of what the Olympics needs to succeed are an area for gymnastics and etc., a soccer field, an open stadium with a track that can serve for opening ceremonies, and a pool. Everything else is superfluous and too damned expensive.

I think that the athletic portion of the Olympics can be held successfully at any major American university. The pomp and circumstance and bribery surrounding the rest? I fail to see how any of that connects to the "Olympic vision."

[Brian in Boston]

So go Rio...

As I mentioned earlier, Rio de Janeiro will likely be the early sentimental favorite to serve as host in 2016 as the Olympic Games have never been held in South America. Thus, awarding them to Rio will be seen as a "legacy" move. That said, Brazil is currently the sole candidate to play host to the 2014 World Cup. In terms of garnering both public and private financial support, Rio de Janeiro's efforts to land the 2106 Summer Olympic Games could come up short next to the World Cup bid in a soccer-mad country. Bottom line: Will Brazil's economy be able - or willing - to support the infrastructure of two large-scale and exceedingly expensive international sporting events in such a short time-frame?

go Tokyo...

Given the fact that the 2008 Summer Olympics will have taken place in Beijing just eight years before the 2016 Games, the odds of the IOC approving another Summer Olympics go-around in Asia so soon after will be next to nil.

go Rome, go Madrid...

European cities Rome and Madrid - as well as Prague - will have no chance of landing the 2016 Summer Olympic Games just four years after London hosts the 2012 edition. None.

Perhaps most importantly, the IOC's lucrative television contract with NBC is set to expire after the 2012 Games. If there is one thing of which the IOC is extremely well aware it is money... particularly the dollars which are linked to the American marketplace. As a result, the IOC will carefully consider just how awarding the 2016 Games to Chicago - an American market - would impact negotiations on a future television contract. After all, Olympic Games television ratings in the United States benefit most from as much live broadcast coverage as possible. Chicago's location in the Central Time Zone is ideal for US broadcast purposes, thus pleasing a deep-pocketed, American-based US broadcast partner.

(if) Chicago gets announced as the winning bidder, the next day, I'm marching in to my boss' office and putting in a 16-day vacation request for 2016.

Honestly, the way things seem to be aligning, I'd put in for that vacation request now.

[rams80]

"Los Angeles Olympics" just feels right, and I'd rather let it be their problem.

Same here

To expand a little....

The 1984 Games in LA seem to be "The Games that saved the Olympics". The Olympics as we know them today date from the success and extravaganza that was Los Angeles in 1984. Better yet, they are recent enough that they should be able to get away with renovating the facilites as opposed to having waves of new construction.

[Brian in Boston]

... they are recent enough that they should be able to get away with renovating the facilites as opposed to having waves of new construction.

Which, though the folks who voted yesterday will be loathe to admit it, likely played a role in Los Angeles not landing the US 2016 bid. The LA bid was likely perceived as being the "same old, same old"... little more than a rehash of the past LA Games.

Further, the LA venues were much more geographically spread out than those that Chicago's bid proposes.

[illwauk]

Detroit may have its merits, but some serious things went wrong there to end up with the white flight that Motown suffered. That's a problem, if you ask me. Cities should be lively and diverse, not blighted and abandoned, which has happened to too much of what by all means really ought to be a really cool city, not a punchline. I don't agree with how Daley did a lot of what he's done, but sometimes you need a little corruption to get results, and the results are that Chicago hasn't suffered from the same downturns that other Great Lakes cities have, like Cleveland, Detroit, Pittsburgh, and Buffalo.

And people wonder why I can't take Chicago seriously...

BTW, Detroit is actually quite lively and cool. And it's full of neighborhoods that are reinventing themselves WITHOUT gentrification. Maybe you'd know that if you actually spent some time there instead of relying on media stereotypes.

They say a picture's worth a thousand words, and I've seen enough pictures of abandoned, bombed out buildings in Detroit taken recently to know that Motown has a problem. Although I'm pretty sure that when it comes to corruption in urban leadership, its not the exclusive province of Chicago.

Translation: I choose not to think for myself and allow others to frame Detroit's image for me.

And you're right in that every major city in the US has had its share of corruption at one point or another, but only Chicago allowed its political machine to last into the 1970's (and then allowed it to start again in abbreviated form in 1989).

Daley's gentrification kick has forced a ridiculous number of Black residents into the suburbs where (ironically) it's now cheaper to live. That's definetly not the sign of a city that deserves to host an international and multicultural event like the olympics.

Chicago is very international and multicultural, like any city of that size and prominence ought to be. Cities aren't the birthright and exclusive province of black people, you know.

I'm sorry, I thought part of being multicultural was respecting the fact that people of all different backgrounds have a right to live where they want to. Especially when it's the only place that said people can afford to live.

Gentrification is not progress... it's just a sorry a*s excuse for politicans not to have to deal with the issues they helped create.

I think that's what Sobriquet! was getting at...other people besides African Americans want to live within the city.

Besides, it could be worse...Beijing's reportedly deporting all of the malcontents and undesirables within 150-mile radius of the city and event areas to the boonies.

Ummm... there's plenty of areas of Chicago that are devoid of those mean and scary Black people. See Lincoln Park, Wrigleyville and pretty much anywhere on the north side or within walking distance of Lake Michigan. And it's not even like the Black people actually chose to live in the south side either. They were redlined out of every other part of town. And now because all the white people who rushed out to the burbs want to live in the city again, the Black people are supposed to just up and leave? That doesn't sound like progress to me... it sounds like selling out loyal residents for a quick buck.

[The_Admiral]

SO HOW ABOUT THAT RIO DE JANEIRO

[rams80]

SO HOW ABOUT THAT RIO DE JANEIRO

Can the US quickly put a bid in for the 2014 World Cup?

[NJTank]

I'm for no more Olympics being held in the United States. We have them in this country far too enough and I'm still waiting to see a tangible benefit of doing so.

In fact, I'm for no more Olympics period until the entire set of financial and infrastructural expectations. It seems most of what the Olympics needs to succeed are an area for gymnastics and etc., a soccer field, an open stadium with a track that can serve for opening ceremonies, and a pool. Everything else is superfluous and too damned expensive.

I think that the athletic portion of the Olympics can be held successfully at any major American university. The pomp and circumstance and bribery surrounding the rest? I fail to see how any of that connects to the "Olympic vision."

Because uprise surprise the Olympics is also about CAPITALISM I know you hate that word, and putting them in a small setting would not make any money for anyone

[Roger Clemente]

Chicago doesn't stand a chance, IMO. Not with the Olympics being in North America as recently as six years before it.

There was only a six year difference between Atlanta and Salt Lake. Toronto finished runner-up to Beijing for 2008, that would have been another six years. Vancouver though makes it eight years, but Chicago could make it another six years again.

--Roger "Time?" Clemente.

[rams80]

Chicago doesn't stand a chance, IMO. Not with the Olympics being in North America as recently as six years before it.

There was only a six year difference between Atlanta and Salt Lake. Toronto finished runner-up to Beijing for 2008, that would have been another six years. Vancouver though makes it eight years, but Chicago could make it another six years again.

--Roger "Time?" Clemente.

Heck Europe had consecutive Olympics under that counting-Athens in 2004, Torino in 2006. (Which goes to show that the IOC considers winter and summer Olympiads two separate, independent events, and the awarding of one does not impact the awarding of another.)

[Roger Clemente]

Is it this summer when they will vote to see who gets to host 2014 Winter Olympics?

--Roger "Time?" Clemente.

[Brian in Boston]

Is it this summer when they will vote to see who gets to host 2014 Winter Olympics?

Yes. If I remember correctly, the IOC will elect the host site of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games on July 4, 2007. The candidate sites are:

PyeongChang, Republic of Korea

Salzburg, Austria

Sochi, Russia.

[winghaz]

I really hope Chicago gets the Olympics. But something in me also wants Rio to get it. I mean, think of a possible Rio Olympics. The women on the beach. Seeing the geophysical features of Rio, such as Sugarloaf Mountain. The women on the beach. The samba-playing opening ceremonies. The women on the beach. Pele lighting the torch. The women on the beach. Etc., etc., etc.

[DEAD!]

I really hope Chicago gets the Olympics. But something in me also wants Rio to get it. I mean, think of a possible Rio Olympics. The women on the beach. Seeing the geophysical features of Rio, such as Sugarloaf Mountain. The women on the beach. The samba-playing opening ceremonies. The women on the beach. Pele lighting the torch. The women on the beach. Etc., etc., etc.

I have some videos of carinval parades from a cousin of mine. It looks exciting. I suggest if Rio get the Olympics, they should do it at or around carnival time. It would also a great reason for me to visit my many relatives that live in Brazil, although, they live in Sao Paulo.

[Mac the Knife]

No Olympics in Chicago, please. There's no way it would work, and they've talked about having to outsource track and field to Madison or South Bend. That's not Chicago Olympics. That's Generally Around The Midwest Olympics. Better things to do with Chicago than temporary stadia.

Point of order....

Olympiads are regional affairs and have been for some time. Sites are scattered throughout the vicinity of the host city, and in some cases, may not be close to the city at all. (Recalls seeing that Paris' bid had the rowing events on the Atlantic coast, etc.)

So we could have the 100m Hurdles take place in Gary, Indiana? That'd be great - the runners could simply jump over the abandoned cars.

[NJTank]

Is it this summer when they will vote to see who gets to host 2014 Winter Olympics?

Yes. If I remember correctly, the IOC will elect the host site of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games on July 4, 2007. The candidate sites are:

PyeongChang, Republic of Korea

Salzburg, Austria

Sochi, Russia.

Russia may be an interesting choice since the last time they hosted was not so good with the boycots.

[rams80]

Is it this summer when they will vote to see who gets to host 2014 Winter Olympics?

Yes. If I remember correctly, the IOC will elect the host site of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games on July 4, 2007. The candidate sites are:

PyeongChang, Republic of Korea

Salzburg, Austria

Sochi, Russia.

Russia may be an interesting choice since the last time they hosted was not so good with the boycots.

Tank...that was in the middle of the Cold War and they had just knocked over Afghanistan.

Quite frankly, if anyone's Olympics is in danger of a mass boycott because of that, it'd be ours.

[scarsofthumper]

I know this is an old thread, but with Obama winning the election tonight, does that perhaps boost Chicago's chances for the Olympics?

If you walk around downtown Chicago, there's ads all over the place for the Chicago2016.org site and how you can get the word out.

[rams80]

I know this is an old thread, but with Obama winning the election tonight, does that perhaps boost Chicago's chances for the Olympics?

If you walk around downtown Chicago, there's ads all over the place for the Chicago2016.org site and how you can get the word out.

I believe there is a very strong possibility this was locked up tonight.

As an Illinois taxpayer...d@mnit.