The International Olympic Committee (IOC) Evaluation Commission arrived in New York Sunday night to begin a four-day visit Monday inspecting New York’s bid for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games.
The first event was a pep rally at New York’s famous Rockefeller Center Monday morning followed by meetings at the Plaza Hotel where the 13-member team is staying.
On Monday New York 2012 announced that its Circle of Olympians and Paralympians had surpassed 1,800 members, which the committee believes is the greatest number of Olympians to ever support an Olympic bid. The more than 1,800 members represent 52 different countries and all 50 United States.
Circle members demonstrate their support for any Olympic and Paralympic Games in New York City by getting actively involved in New York’s bid and have a prominent voice in all aspects of the plan.
Meanwhile bid founder and New York City Deputy Mayor for Economic Development Dan Doctoroff reportedly said the group likely would not bid again for the 2016 Games should the IOC fail to award the Olympics to New York this July, although according to The Washington Post there was an understanding by many in the U.S. Olympic Committee three years ago when New York was chosen as the U.S. candidate city, that it would try again if it lost.
Doctoroff said in an interview last week elements critical to New York’s Olympic plan that made it an ideal candidate for the 2012 Games probably would not be in place four years from now. He said, “our bid today is a combination of a unique series of resources that I’m not sure are replicable. I do think this is a unique moment in time”.
He added that if asked he would pass the information on to the IOC evaluation team this week, indicating that it could be now or never for a Summer Games in New York City for the IOC, reports the newspaper.
But Rob Livingstone, publisher of GamesBids.com, thinks Doctoroff is bluffing. Livingstone said, “it’s probably sales tactics so that IOC members who have been thinking of voting for New York in the future will feel compelled to vote for New York” this time around.
