Delegations from Los Angeles and Paris hoping to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2024 met with key International Olympic Committee (IOC) members Monday, and among the topics were the possible joint awarding of the Games for both 2024 and 2028 in September this year.
The IOC reported in a statement that Vice Presidents Yu Zaquing from China, Juan Antonio Samaranch from Spain and Ugur Erdener from Turkey met with the bid delegations. Along with Australia’s John Coates, the remaining Vice President who is absent from the Aarhus, Denmark SportAccord Convention, they make up the four-member panel tasked with investigating possible bid reforms including the double 2024 and 2028 awarding.
The LA 2024 delegation is being led by Mayor Eric Garcetti and Mayor Anne Hidalgo fronts the Paris 2024 delegation at the biggest annual international sport convention on the calendar. As a courtesy, the IOC said, President Thomas Bach met individually with the Mayors to “wish them well for the remainders of their candidatures.”
A statement said that in their meeting with the Vice Presidents regarding the ongoing bid process “the delegations were also informed that the Working Group may consider changes to the 2024/2028 selection process, and should this be the case, it would be raised with the Candidate Cities at a later stage.”
The possibility of awarding the Games to both remaining cities in 2024 or 2028 was raised late last year when Bach said he wanted to change the process because there were “too many losers.” But amid declining interest to host the Games, including three cities that have dropped out of the 2024 race and four that withdrew from the 2022 Olympic Winter Games bid, it is thought the double-awarding is more of an opportunity for the IOC to immediately secure two viable host cities for the next decade.
While both cities agree with the concept, neither say they will consider conceding the 2024 Games in favour of 2028. Paris Co-Chair Estanguet said his bid is only available for 2024 and that the land required for the Olympic Village will not be available for 2028. LA 2024 Chair Casey Wasserman said last week in a published editorial that the value that LA 2024 can provide the Olympic Movement is needed now.
The Working Group is expected to report its findings to IOC members at a meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland on July 11, but some IOC members have said that the concept is only viable if the bid cities agree in advance that they could host either year.
Both bids have repeatedly said that they are focused only on a 2024 bid. In a statement, LA’s bid reiterated its focus.
“LA 2024 would like to thank the IOC for today’s meetings,” it said.
“We remain committed to bidding for the 2024 Games and look forward to future discussions with the IOC Working Group as the bid progresses.”
The IOC is set to vote for the winning city September 13 at it’s session in Lima, Peru.
