Oslo Out of 2022 Olympic Race

(ATR) The ruling Norwegian conservative party said they would not support the Oslo 2022 bid, ending the city’s campaign.

On Wednesday, Trond Helleland, the party’s parliamentary leader said that following a day of debate, the party would not offer financial guarantees for the bid. The government’s decision, he said, was due to the cost of the Games and lack of public support for a bid.

Oslo 2022 support continued to decline in opinion polls, leveling out at around 33 percent in favor. Politicians balked at the high price tag of the Games and for what they perceived to be the pampering of IOC members.

Stian Berger Røsland, the mayor of Oslo, said in a statement he was "disappointed" with the decision, but said the dream to stage the Olympics in Norway must go on. Oslo hosted the 1952 Olympics.

He also pointed out that the citizens of Oslo voted in favor of the Games during a 2013 referendum and that the city council also approved the bid.

No immediate reaction was available from the Oslo 2022 bid committee.

With Oslo pulling out, only Beijing and Almaty, Kazakhstan remain in the running for the 2022 Olympics. The IOC will select a host at its Session in Kuala Lumpur next year.

The 2022 campaign has been a particularly embarrassing one for the IOC. Voters said no to bids from Switzerland, Stockholm, Munich and Poland. Lviv, Ukraine also launched a bid but Ukrainian Olympic officials ended the bid due to the ongoing political instability in the country.

The constant flow of rejections prompted soul searching from IOC members. A near universal consensus has emerged that the bid process must be reformed and the IOC must better communicate how it supports bid cites—and costs of the Games must be reined in.

Written by Ed Hula III

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