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USOC Officials Bullish On L.A.'s Chances Of Bidding On '24 Summer Games

USOC Chair Larry Probst said the organization’s BOD authorized CEO Scott Blackmun to finalize terms of a bid for the ’24 Games with L.A. Blackmun cautioned that the USOC and L.A. officials will not make any final decisions until the end of the month, and details still must be negotiated. Probst noted sides are enthusiastic and optimistic. Boston 2024’s primary problem -- local support -- is L.A.’s strength. In a USOC-sponsored poll of L.A. adults from Aug. 1-3, 81% of respondents supported a bid. That is nearly double the support registered for the failed Boston bid in its final weeks. Only 11% were opposed. Wasserman Media Group Chair & CEO Casey Wasserman and L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti will continue to lead local planning for the bid. Blackmun also noted regional political support is near universal. He added that the L.A. County Board of Supervisors, L.A. City Council and the region’s congressional delegation have all signed statements of support. The U.S. has until Sept. 15 to declare an intent to bid to the IOC. Blackmun: “We’re on a truncated timeline, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t going to take the time to make sure this works well for both partners in the partnership.” The USOC BOD vote comes after Garcetti pledged to sign the host city contract, which includes a guarantee from the city to cover cost overruns. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh helped kill the Boston bid when he refused to sign it. L.A. officials on Monday said the proposed budget for the Olympics would be $4.5B, including a $400M contingency. Garcetti in a statement said, "The L.A. Olympics would inspire the world and are right for our city” (Ben Fischer, Staff Writer).

FEELING CALIFORNIA: In L.A., David Wharton writes L.A.'s chances of bidding for the '24 Games "have never seemed better." But for Garcetti and the USOC to "reach an agreement, key issues must be resolved." There are questions about "how the public will view the bid now that the mayor has announced it will cost" a projected $4.1B. And that the city "will be responsible for any unexpected cost overruns." The terms of the contract "appear to be at the center of current negotiations." Neither Garcetti nor USOC leaders "would discuss specifics, but a similar contract signed by Boston during its recent campaign offers some idea of the issues that could be at stake" (L.A. TIMES, 8/13). Probst and Blackmun said that they "hope to reach a final decision by the end of the month." USA TODAY's Rachel Axon notes initial bids "are due" to the IOC on Sept. 15. Blackmun said of L.A., “You can’t overestimate the importance of the experience. They have strong venues. They have incredibly strong public support. They have incredibly strong political support." Axon notes in yesterday's meeting, the USOC "considered bids" from S.F. and DC -- who were finalists with L.A. in January -- but concluded that L.A. "was the best option" (USA TODAY, 8/13). In San Jose, Elliott Almond notes Bay Area leaders "had hoped" USOC and L.A. officials "would entertain an innovative all-California Olympics spearheaded" by L.A. and S.F. Anne Cribbs, a co-leader of S.F.'s bid, said that the demise of the city's bid is "bittersweet although she expected it." Almond noted the Bay Area "probably would get to play host to soccer and rugby" if L.A. wins the bid (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 8/13). In San Diego, Mark Zeigler notes L.A. bid officials "made it clear earlier this year that their plan is exclusive" to L.A. County and "involves no venues in neighboring locales," as the '84 Games did (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 8/13). 

BEEN THERE, DONE THAT
: The AP's Eddie Pells noted because L.A. has the Memorial Coliseum -- "centerpiece of the 1932 and 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles -- and at least a dozen more Olympic-ready venues (to say nothing of a new NFL stadium that could be built by then), the USOC is optimistic it can keep costs in relative check." Because there "won't be as many large projects," Probst feels that an L.A. bid "is more in line with the less-extravagant Olympic model" that IOC President Thomas Bach outlined in his recently released Agenda 2020 reforms. Probst also suggested that the "positive feelings from the successful '84 Games still resonate in Southern California." Probst: "People remember that time. It left a great legacy for the city" (AP, 8/12). In Boston, Mark Arsenault writes under the header, "L.A. Comfortable With Olympic Bid In Ways Boston Wasn't." While Boston’s Olympics opponents "seemed from the outset to dominate the social media debate, a Twitter account of the group No Los Angeles Olympics, first heard from July 27, had just 82 followers" as of 8:00pm ET last night (BOSTON GLOBE, 8/13).

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