(ATR) Paris 2024 co-chairman Tony Estanguet says the city is going all in on its bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics.
The three-time Olympic canoeing champion tells Spanish news agency EFE that he believes the 2024 bid will be the last attempt by the city.
"This is the sixth time that Paris has chosen to bid for Games," Estanguet says. "If we do not win, there will be no more nominations. I think it's the last attempt."
There has been some speculation in Olympic circles that the International Olympic Committee may forego its typical bidding process and elect host cities for the next two Summer Olympics at its IOC Session this September in Lima, Peru. The speculation was fueled by IOC president Thomas Bach’s comments that the current Olympic bidding process produces too many losers.
Estanguet believes the city is primed to become the winner of the 2024 bidding cycle, not 2028. He says the 2024 project is "in line with what the IOC has asked for and it is a reasonable project without excessive expenses."
The IOC and Athletes’ Commission member adds that Paris has "more options than ever" to win because "it has learned from the mistakes of the past." The city unsuccessfully bid for the Games in 2012, 2008 and 1992 but is seeking to change its luck and host the Games on the 100th anniversary of Paris’ last Olympics in 1924. Paris also hosted the second modern edition of the Olympics in 1900.
Paris is competing with Budapest and Los Angeles to stage the 2024 Olympics. Los Angeles 2024 and the United States Olympic Committee have also foregone the assumption that it could win the right to host the 2028 Olympics instead of the 2024 edition.
"We are 100 percent focused on 2024," USOC communications chief Patrick Sandusky told Around the Rings. "We are not even discussing 2028. We are bidding for 2024."
IOC executive director Christophe Dubi has indicated to ATR that no major renovations to the bidding process should be expected for the 2028 Olympics but that the IOC may start with fewer candidate cities in the future.
The 2024 bid race has already produced three losing cities with Boston dropping out as the original U.S. candidate followed by Hamburg, Germany and Rome, Italy.
The IOC will select the 2024 host city on Sep. 13 in Lima.
Budapest 2024
The odds that a referendum will be held on Budapest’s bid to host the 2024 Summer Games appear to be improving.
The AFP, citing media projections, is reporting that close to 50,000 of the 138,000 signatures needed to force a vote have already been secured in just five days. The initiative must reach the target within 30 days.
The Budapest mayor Istvan Tarlos is taking notice, telling the M1 news channel "Whoever loves Budapest supports the Olympics and doesn’t sign these forms."
This latest referendum effort called "NOlimpia" is being spearheaded by the politically-motivated group called Momentum Mozalem, an organization with a majority of members who are in their 20's and 30's.
Budapest 2024 told ATR last week that the bid does not want to get involved in a political debate and had no comment on the latest referendum effort.
Previous attempts to force a referendum have been nixed by the Hungarian courts and Budapest city hall.
LA 2024
Los Angeles 2024 bid leaders hope to use Facebook Live to continue a conversation about the final stages of the city's bid.
Bid chairman Casey Wasserman and vice-chair Janet Evans held a Facebook Live question and answer session today to engage with people worldwide about the bid. The pair answered questions about venue choices, decisions on ceremonies, the next steps for the bid, and even where a torch relay could be held during a half-hour conversation.
Answering a question from Around the Rings Evans says the bid plans to continue using Facebook Live to share "what we are doing and what we are planning." LA 2024 last held a Facebook Live question and answer in March 2016.
"I’d love to do more of them," Evans said to ATR. "It just shows the innovation and the creativity that we use here at LA 2024."
Wasserman echoed Evans’ enthusiasm, saying the sessions showed transparency in the bid.
"[After this process] the bid book that we present to the IOC will be… what you see is what you get," Wassserman added.
Intrigue over the 2024 bid process has been stirred up in recent months after IOC President Thomas Bach said Olympic bidding produces "too many losers." Wasserman said that the LA bid committee is focused on winning the 2024 Games, but noted speculation that the IOC may jointly award the 2024 and 2028 Games is an "interesting concept."
"Nobody has come to us with the idea in an official capacity, we have obviously read the press like everyone else," Wasserman said. "I think it is an interesting concept but you might be too far into the process to change that."
Written by Kevin Nutley, Gerard Farek and Aaron Bauer.
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