Bidding for the Games: Happy Rio; White House and Copenhagen

Valerie Jarrett Confirmed for Copenhagen, No Michael Jordan

While the Olympics world waits for word on whether President Barack Obama will attend the IOC Session in Copenhagen, his closest aide in the White House is confirmed for Denmark.

Senior adviser Valerie Jarrett will be a part of the Chicago delegation, Chicago 2016 spokesman Patrick Sandusky tells Around the Rings.

Jarrett, a Chicago businesswoman, has been part of the Obama team since the campaign and a long-time friend of the Obamas.

Speculation has mounted in the past few weeks over the President’s availability for the Copenhagen meeting.

And he may be asked about it when the President and the First Lady host a group of Olympians Sep.16 at the White House to promote the bid, just over two weeks before the Oct. 2 IOC vote.

Michael Jordan, perhaps the most famous athlete ambassador for the Chicago bid, apparently will not be a part of the delegation in Denmark, bid leader Patrick Ryan tells the Chicago Tribune. Another Chicago star, TV host Oprah Winfrey, tells ABC-TV she will go to Copenhagen if she is needed.

Official delegations from any of the 2016 cities have yet to be named.

Chicago Wins City Council Support

Chicago 2016 cleared a major hurdle when the city council voted 49-0 to allow Mayor Richard M. Daley to sign the IOC host-city contract. The aldermen - with one absent - were called one by one Wednesday to cast their ballot.

"We were holding our breath," Chicago bid chief Patrick Ryan tells Around the Rings. "The unanimous vote, particularly in this body of legislators, is very unusual and this does not in any way reflect 'wanting to go along to get along.'"

Ryan called the unanimity "a great statement of support and belief and trust."

Agreeing to sign the host-city contract without amendments and providing necessary financial guarantees were crucial issues for Chicago before the Oct. 2 vote in Copenhagen.

Madrid, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo have already signed the host-city contract.

Over the past weeks, Chicago bid leaders held 28 town-hall type meetings in all 50 wards of the city.

During the city council meeting prior to Wednesday's vote, Ryan said, "There were several (aldermen) who said, 'I was against this until Chicago 2016 answered all my questions and the questions of my constituents.' Others said they decided in the last day that they would in fact support it because we had answered all the questions. They've always been enthusiastic about having the Olympics here, but they wanted to be sure this was done right and abided by their demands and also the IOC demands."

Happy Rio Says Survey

Organizers of the Rio de Janeiro 2016 bid are trumpeting the results of a poll that names the city as “the happiest” in the world.

The survey by GfK Custom Research North America includes another 2016 bidder in the top 10, Madrid at number six.

Complete results of the survey were not immediately available from GfK Custom Research.

“The world has discovered what we know: Rio is a special place to live and work. The city perfectly unites nature, culture and urban living for people of all ages,” said Mayor Eduardo Paes in a statement from Rio 2016.

Written by Ed Hula and Karen Rosen.