LA ’24 expects to strike a deal by September guaranteeing the first U.S. Summer Games since '96 after the IOC agreed to make both L.A. and rival Paris ‘24 winners during an extraordinary session today in Lausanne. The IOC approved the plan to award both ’24 and ’28 Games simultaneously in a unanimous show of hands at 5:20pm local time in Swizterland. As it was announced, L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti and Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo took the stage to say “thank you” and grasp hands with IOC President Thomas Bach. The plan depends on successful three-way negotiations between Paris, L.A. and the IOC to determine who gets the ’24 Games and who waits until ’28. It is still possible that those talks could collapse, but that would constitute an unforeseen, massive collapse in IOC-USOC relations after nearly a decade of efforts at good will. L.A. bid officials said earlier in the day they are open to waiting even as they keep pushing for ’24. "You can be a kid with his toys and say, 'If you don’t give me exactly what I want, I’m getting out of here,'” Garcetti said earlier in the day. “But we believe in this movement too much to do that.” The development constitutes a major victory for the USOC, which has invested extraordinary executive attention at repairing its international relations in pursuit of the Games. “The IOC leadership has a desired outcome in mind, and that’s likely that’s where we will end up,” said USOC Chair and IOC member Larry Probst moments before the vote. Nevertheless, it is not a certainty. Either L.A. or Paris would have to agree to withdraw their candidacy for ’24, and L.A. in particular has said it would hope for certain concessions to reflect the increased cost and risk of maintaining an organizing committee for 11 years instead of seven. Some IOC members have objected to the idea that the waiting bid city should get anything extra. They argue that Paris or L.A. would receive a Games uncontested, saving $50-100M in new bid costs they would otherwise be required to spend to win ’28.
MOVE MONTHS IN THE MAKING: The prospect of awarding two Games first gained currency last December when Bach said the bid process creates “too many losers.” As eight different cities withdrew bids due to local political opposition this decade, the IOC decided it could not afford to alienate either France or the U.S. However, until today, critical questions about the process remained unanswered. Australian IOC VP John Coates explained how it will work, saying that assuming a deal is done, one city would withdraw its candidacy for ’24 and then declare its desire for ’28. An IOC commission would be appointed in short order to review possible changes required for the ’28 Games, and talks would continue to ensure that those concerns are addressed or accounted for. A report assessing the circumstances created by a four-year delay would then be provided by IOC members, about a month before the planned Sept. 13 vote in Lima, Peru. If a three-way deal is done, IOC members would be given a single package to ratify, eliminating any direct vote that would set up L.A. and Paris as zero-sum rivals.
