IOC Receives 2024 Candidature Files; Bids Tout Strengths

(ATR) Thomas Bach says the first candidature files submitted by Los Angeles, Rome, Budapest and Paris are "fully in line" with IOC reforms.

"It is impressive to see how they have incorporated the Olympic project into the long-term development plans of their city, region and country," Bach said in a statement Wednesday.

"Coming from different starting points, for all four there is a clear focus on sustainable development, legacy and in particular how the facilities are going to be used after the Olympic Games. We are delighted to have four extremely strong candidatures and look forward to a fascinating competition", he added.

Wednesday was the deadline for the first submissions by the candidate cities in the revamped three-phase Olympic bidding contest. The files delivered to the IOC cover ‘vision, Games concept and strategy’.

Under Agenda 2020 reforms, the new process encourages the cities to present Olympic projects that best match their sports, economic, social and environmental planning needs.

The IOC aims to cut costs in the 2024 bid race. Jacqueline Barrett, the IOC’s associate director of Olympic Games, said the simplified candidature process was symbolized by the fact that "submissions arrived for the very first time on a USB key only, instead of thousands of pages of paper documents".

An IOC-appointed working group will now review the first bid files, reporting to the IOC Executive Board in June. The EB will decide whether to put through all four bids to the next stage. Unless there is anything drastically wrong, the IOC will not cut the field.

The IOC has set a Oct. 7 deadline for the next bid submission covering ‘governance, legal and venue funding’. The final bid documents focusing on ‘Games delivery, experience and venue legacy’ are due Feb. 3, 2017.

An IOC Evaluation Commission, due to be appointed in two weeks, will make inspection visits to each city next spring to assess their projects in detail before issuing a final report. The IOC vote takes place in September 2017.

Budapest Plays it Low-Key

Unlike Paris and Rome, the Hungarian bid opted not to spend money on a lavish public event to unveil their Games concept. "We are doing it differently," Iván Rozsa, the bid’s new communications chief, tells Around the Rings.

"Our desire to host the Games is reflected in our tireless campaign of five previous bids going back as far as 1916. More than ever, it is a national priority," says a letter in the bid book signed by Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban and Budapest 2024 leaders.

The bid dossier says Budapest represents "a new city and country for the Games", with 90 percent of Hungary’s population within 90 minutes of Olympic venues. The plan features two zones, seven clusters and only five standalone venues.

Budapest says the government and municipality will fund all Olympic venues and infrastructure.

Los Angeles Touts Experience

Los Angeles 2024 unveiled its bid logo at a special event on Tuesday night on the top floor of a downtown skyscraper attended by 100 Olympians and Paralympians.

LA 2024 chairman Casey Wasserman says his city is one of, if not the most, prepared cities to ever bid for the Games. He told reporters via conference call on Wednesday that "97 percent of the needed venues for the 2024 Olympics already exist, are planned or will be temporary. That is the definition of sustainability in legacy and cost."

But LA 2024 CEO Gene Sykes is well aware that it takes more than just a great bid to land the Games.

"There is no question our job is to be humble in our approach and get to know the membership as well as possible," says Sykes. "This bid is a part of the process but it is not how these things are determined entirely. We are going to work tirelessly to make sure the members have faces and people and personalities and stories and history to connect to the technical plan."

Paris Promotes Readiness

Paris 2024 lifted the lid on its Games vision and concept at the Philharmonie de Paris in front of 500 athletes and senior politicians including prime minister Manuel Valls and mayor Anne Hidalgo.

Bid leaders Bernard Lapasset and Tony Estanguet told the audience that 95 percent of venues already exist or will be temporary to cut costs. There are two core zones – Paris Centre Zone and Saint-Denis. Existing venues would include Roland-Garros and athletics at Stade de France, while temporary venues will offer spectacular backdrops such as equestrian at the Chateau de Versailles and beach volleyball at the foot of the Eiffel Tower.

"Our Games vision and concept is underpinned by a real commitment to place sport at the service of society – in Paris, across France and beyond our nation’s physical borders," Lapasset said.

Paris mayor Hidalgo said the city was embarking on "a journey of re-invention to unleash its innovation, radiance and sense of optimism".

Rome Promises Stunning Backdrops

More than 1,000 guests attended an event showcasing the Rome Olympic bid concept at Palazzo dei Congressi. Bid president Luca di Montezemolo and Italian Olympic Committee chief Giovanni Malagò outlined the benefits of bringing the Games to Rome again.

"70% of the facilities required to host events around Rome are already in place," Montezemolo said. "The budget for permanent venues, principally the Olympic Village and press center, would be €2.1 billion."

In a bid to avoid constructing "white elephant" venues, temporary venues are planned, he added. The three key zones are: the Foro Italico, which houses Stadio Olimpico built for the 1960 Games, Fiera di Roma and Tor Vergata, which would host the Olympic Village.

Rome bid leaders also touted the "stunning backdrops" that would be the site of some Olympic sports. Athletes would step up to receive their medals in front of the Colosseum, while cycling road races would be held around the ancient sites of the Fori Imperiali.

Reported by Mark Bisson and Gerard Farek

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