Who Wants The Olympics?

Published July 13, 2017 at 10:00 AM CDT

Yoga instructor Michael Phillip poses with a Los Angeles 2024 sign outside Staples Center, Friday, May 12, 2017, in Los Angeles. (Jae C. Hong/AP)

With guest host John Harwood.

Paris and Los Angeles are vying for the 2024 and 2028 Summer Olympics. But a lot of other cities won’t touch the Games. We look at what’s up, what’s wrong and what’s next.

As an idea, the Olympic Games are a thing of beauty, celebrating peaceful competition among nations and the greatest athletes in the world. But for the cities that host them, reality can look pretty ugly – especially after the TV cameras have gone. So some are opting out. We find out why. This hour, On Point: at home and abroad, troubles in the world of sport. — John Harwood.

Guests

Jerry Sullivan, editor of the Los Angeles Business Journal.

Andrew Zimbalist, author of, “Circus Maximus: The Economic Gamble Behind Hosting the Olympics and the World Cup.” Professor of Economics at Smith College.

Nancy Armour, sports columnist for USA Today. The 2018 winter games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, will be the 12th Olympic games she has attended since her fist in 1996. ( @nrarmour)

From The Reading List

CNN: Paris and Los Angeles set to get 2024 and 2028 Olympics — “The International Olympic Committee voted unanimously Tuesday to break with tradition and award two games at once. Paris and LA are the only competitors left for 2024. But it’s been clear since early this year that the IOC is leaning toward awarding the next two games at the same time, to streamline the selection process and provide greater financial stability to the games.”

USA Today: Los Angeles is closer to hosting another Olympics, while few cities can stay in race — “Organized opposition or lack of political support has largely contributed to eight cities, including Boston, pulling out of the bidding process in the past two cycles. Only four have remained to the vote — Beijing and Almaty, Kazakhstan for 2022 and Los Angeles and Paris for 2024.”

Los Angeles Business Journal: Olympics-Sized Transit Effort — “Millions of people, both locals and visitors, are expected to attend Olympic events if Los Angeles wins its bid. With venues as far afield as downtown, Long Beach and Lake Perris in Riverside County, government officials in the already gridlock-ridden urban area are expecting public transportation to be key.”