Gathering at Centennial Olympic Park Marks Anniversary for Atlanta 1996

(ATR) Close to 400 people will celebrate the 25th anniversary of Atlanta winning the 1996 Olympics at Centennial Olympic Park tonight.

George Hirthler, a leading Olympic bid consultant, spoke withAround the Rings about the celebration planned to mark the anniversary.

Keynote speaker Billy Payne, who led the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games in 1996, is slated toopen theinvitation-only event.

Payne will introduce Andrew Young, who as mayor agreed to Payne's plan to bid for the Games. Young, former U.N. ambassador, is credited with winning international support for the bid.

Maynard Jackson, who succeeded Young as mayor of Atlanta, also led the city's efforts to secure the 1996 Games.

ATReditor Ed Hula spoke withPayne and Young this week about the 25th anniversary of the IOC vote in Tokyo.

On Sept. 18, 1990, then IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch announced Atlanta would host the 1996 Summer Olympics. Athens, Toronto, Melbourne and Belgrade were the other contenders.

"It was unbelievable," Payne said of that day.He added that public support for Atlanta's Olympic bid is "100 percent" the reason why the city won the Olympics.

"Everything seemed to be right about this," Young said of the timing of Atlanta's bid for the Games.

"It was something I thought Atlanta needed.I thought the Olympics needed Atlanta."

Payne and Young said that members of ACOG could not contain their excitement in Tokyoafter the IOC vote came down. The mood in Atlanta that day was similarly joyous, Hirthler said.

"Everybody who was here in Atlanta on the morning of Sept. 18, will never forget that moment," Hirthler told ATR.

"We all recognized it at the time as a significant turning point in Atlanta's history.

"And the bid campaign itself did indeed put Atlanta on the map internationally."

Young echoed Hirthler's sentiments on the Games. "On the day we won the Olympics, UPS decided to move their headquarters here.

"It was the emergence of Atlanta as a truly international economic center of the global economy."

Payne said that aside from the economic benefits of the Games, he sees the legacy of Atlanta 1996 in the memories of citizens who were in the city during the Olympics.

R"You can count on one or two hands, the number of times in these 20 years since the Games, the number of days that somebody did not walk up to me and start telling me about their recollection of the Games.

"I think the fact that we pulled this off and had this opportunity is still in the consciousness of the citizenry of Atlanta."

Young said that he thinks the Olympic Games serve as an important reminder for people across the globe."The world needs to celebrate the fact that it is possible for us to live together in peace.

"At least celebrate the possibility every four years."

The event at Centennial Olympic Park on Friday will mark the first of two major mile-markers for the Atlanta Games taking place between 2015 and 2016.

July 19 of next year marks the 20th anniversary of the opening 1996 Olympics.

Written byNicole Bennett

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