In case you were the only person in the U.S. whom failed to hear the news, Chicago beat out Los Angeles for USOC's bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. 'So what,' you say, 'it's just the nomination.' I know, I know. But as I've been harping for the past year, whichever American city receives the nomination will be the automatic front-runner. For if the bid has little else, it will have the geographic advantage. Since the Summer Olympic Games were last held in Atlanta, GA of 1996, they will have gone to Oceania (Sydney 2000), Southern Europe (Athens 2004), Asia (Beijing 2004) and Northern Europe (London 2012). So unless strong bids are presented from African or South American nations, all signs point to Chicago.
On a slightly different note, Chicago's selection reaffirms my belief that USOC Chairman Peter Ueberroth has things headed in the right direction.
Back in November, Mr. Ueberroth gave an address at the Domestic Candidate City Seminar. The full text pdf can be found here. In his speech, he discussed how the United States can regain footing in the Olympic movement and the world at large. They key is international relations.
To illustrate the distance we must go in repairing our image among the international sports community, you need only look to July 2005 in Singapore.
That’s when the U.S. Candidate City for the 2012 Olympic Games, New York City, was eliminated in the second round of voting.
After receiving just 16 votes. 16 votes...for which NYC2012 spent almost $60 million, along with untold time, energy and other resources.
Those 16 votes are, in some measure, a reflection of how the United States is viewed in the international sports community.
Which is why International Relations is now a key priority for the USOC. But not just because we want to win a bid. We have examined our relationship with the Olympic Movement. And in the process have recognized the critical importance of the Olympic Movement to our world.
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