The chair of Rome's bid for the 2024 Olympics sees "no need for a public referendum on the candidacy," according to the AP. Rome's city council voted "nearly unanimously" in support of the bid last year, and Luca Cordero di Montezemolo said, "The government has expressed maximum support, so we don't see the necessity. If someone wants to make publicity in an electoral campaign, let them do it. But we're accustomed to dealing with institutions. I don't see the necessity for a referendum right now." The German port city of Hamburg "dropped out of the 2024 race in November after the bid was defeated in a referendum." Budapest, Hungary, another 2024 bidder, "is also facing calls for a referendum." L.A. and Paris "are the other 2024 bidders," with the IOC to select the host city in '17. Montezemolo also announced a bid budget of €24.9M ($27M) -- "more than double the previous estimate" of €10M ($11M) but "significantly less" than the budgets of main rivals Paris and L.A. Montezemolo said the budget highlights the Rome bid's "frugality," adding that €5M ($5.4M) "will come from private contributions and the rest from public sources." Paris is spending €60M ($65M), while L.A. raised $35M "in a single week for its bid campaign." Montezemolo: "We are significantly lower" (AP, 1/11).
