(ATR) The Los Angeles 2024 bid committee chose the University of California-Los Angeles campus to house the Olympic Village while the USC campus will be home to the Media Village.
LA 2024 announced the decision at a press conference on the UCLA campus Monday afternoon. Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti was on-hand for the announcement along with Olympians Janet Evans and Dawn Harper-Nelson as well as leaders of the LA 2024 bid team.
"Today is a very important day in our bid," Mayor Garcetti said to open his speech. "We are very proud to announce we have selected UCLA as the site of our Olympic Village and the University of Southern California as the site of our media village."
"Both UCLA and USC deliver on all the core needs of an athlete-centered bid and an athlete-centered Olympics," said Garcetti.
The decision furthers the bid’s commitment to its sustainability goals by using existing facilities at two of the top-25 universities in the country. Sustainability of each bid will be an important factor in the IOC’s decision given the implementation of Olympic Agenda 2020 reforms.
LA 2024 had been considering a plan to build athletes' accommodationon an Eastside rail yard in the city at an estimated cost of $1 billion. The costs of renovating the university facilities to deliver to athlete expectations must still be factored in.
"These venue choices are not only of the highest quality, they are also fiscally and environmentally sustainable," Garcetti emphasized.
LA 2024 communications chief Jeff Millman tells Around the Rings thatcost projections for the Olympic overlay at the Village will be contained in the second bid dossier due for submission to the IOC later this year.
"UCLA's housing is either new or renovated within the past seven years. The university operates on a seven year renovation cycle, ensuring that every building will be renovated at least one more time between now and 2024," he said.
Bid leader Casey Wasserman says he is proud to bring the Olympic Village to his alma mater.
"This is a historic moment for UCLA," said Wasserman. "I am very much aware of what this University has to offer the Olympic Movement. This place is part of me, it’s in my DNA."
The Media Village will be within walking distance of the downtown venue cluster proposed in the bid. Media members, officials and other Olympic Movement stakeholders will reside in the newly renovated accommodations as well as a planned 15-acre residential and retail village.
LA 2024 says by selecting these venues the bid can ensure an on-time delivery and cost-effective Games plan.
"These villages are clearly the best choices for athletes and also the media. They are also the best choices for the people of Los Angeles," Garcetti concluded.
The new village plans will be included in Los Angeles’ first of three bid submissions to the IOC by Feb. 17. The new candidature process is also a result of the Olympic Agenda 2020 reforms.
Los Angeles is competing with Budapest, Paris and Rome to host the Games. The IOC will choose the winner in September 2017.
Written by KevinNutley
20 Years at #1: Your best source of news about the Olympics is AroundTheRings.com, for subscribersonly.
Últimas Noticias
Utah’s Olympic venues an integral part of the equation as Salt Lake City seeks a Winter Games encore
IOC president tells Olympic Movement “we will again have safe and secure Olympic Games” in Beijing
Boxing’s place in the Olympics remains in peril as IOC still unhappy with the state of AIBA’s reform efforts
IOC president details Olympic community efforts to get Afghans out of danger after Taliban return to power
North Korea suspended by IOC for failing to participate in Tokyo though its athletes could still take part in Beijing 2022
