U.S. President Donald Trump's immigration ban threw L.A.'s bid for the 2024 Olympics "into turmoil" as the city's mayor accused him of "fanning the flames of hatred," according to Ben Rumsby of the London TELEGRAPH. Trump's executive order "severely restricting" access to America by citizens of several Middle Eastern and African countries "appeared to deal a major blow" to L.A.'s hopes of landing the Games later this year. The IOC votes in September "whether to award sport's biggest event" to L.A., Paris or Budapest. IOC member Richard Peterkin, of St. Lucia, posted on Twitter, “Trump’s Executive Order on immigration is totally contrary to Olympic ideals. For him, collective responsibility trumps individual justice.” L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti, who has become one of the faces of the city's bid, said, "Congress outlawed the banning of immigrants by nationality more than 50 years ago, because we have long known that it does not make us safer. It only fans the flames of hatred that those who wish us harm seek to spread." As well as raising questions over whether certain athletes would be permitted entry to America, "Trump's order cast doubt on the future of the IOC's Refugee Olympic Team" (TELEGRAPH, 1/29).
