(ATR) Los Angeles went first in the trio of cities bidding for the 2024 Olympics at the Association of National Olympic Committees general assembly in Doha, Qatar on Tuesday.
The three Olympic bids made their first international presentations to the ANOC assembly, a group representing the 205 national Olympic committees in the world.
Olympic swimming champion Janet Evans, bid vice chair, led the Los Angeles presentation followed by chairman Casey Wasserman, USOC chair and IOC member Larry Probst, IOC Executive Board member Angela Ruggiero, Olympic track champion Allyson Felix and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti.
Evans promised the formation of an Olympic Village Council. Wasserman raised the notion of transformation as a theme. Probst spoke of the hundreds of Olympians from around the world who have trained in the U.S. Ruggiero mentioned the existing Olympic Village and the intersection of sport and entertainment she says is part of Los Angeles.
Felix spoke about the diversity of the U.S., obliquely referencing the slavery of her ancestors and President-elect Donald Trump.
"We’re also a nation with individuals like me, descendants of people who came to America, not of their own free will but against it," she said.
"We just finished our presidential election, and some of you may question America’s commitment to its founding principles. I have one message for you: Please don't doubt us. America’s diversity is our greatest strength," said the Rio gold medalist.
Speeches were short, supplemented by videos that explained the venue concept for Los Angeles, stressing compactness. All were made in English with Evans slipping into American-accented French to close and Garcetti demonstrating his bilingual skills in Spanish.
Speaking to Around the Rings after the presentation, Garcetti says he thinks Los Angeles delivered a strong message.
"It felt great, I thought the team was strong I think our vision is clear and I think it’s different. So we were able to communicate two things: our passion and who the team is and secondly what makes LA clearly different. I think it’s going to be a clear choice for the IOC," he said.
"They want a forward looking truly sustainable Games that is Agenda 2020, LA is a good choice," said the mayor.
The IOC will decide the 2024 race next September at the IOC Session in Lima, Peru.
Written by Ed Hulain Doha.
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