According to a report in the Contra Costa Times, New York’s chances of becoming the U.S. candidate for the 2012 Summer Games are slimmer than they were at the time of the USOC’s evaluation visit.
The report says that Olympic officials behind the scenes have scuttled the bid proposal, saying it has no chance of winning the international bid when the International Olympic Committee votes for a 2012 host city in 2005.
New York’s plan calls for substantial and costly construction projects, but the IOC has frowned on bid cities with high cost construction projects, especially in light of Athens 2004, which has been riddled with problems because of such projects.
IOC member Dick Pound said, “(The IOC) will take a much more cautious approach in selecting the 2012 host city to ensure problems such as these don’t occur again. Some construction is expected, but we are more likely to favour a city that already has most of the structures in place, the less money a city has to spend to build, the more support it is likely to receive because it carries less uncertainty”.
And the West Side project is deemed controversial, despite pledged support from New York City’s Mayor and New York’s Governor. Several state politicians and a group of West Side residents staged a protest of the project in Manhattan during the USOC’s recent visit.
A member of the USOC board of directors said, “one politician went so far as to say he would block any attempt to have the project move forward even if (New York City) was chosen as the U.S. candidate. We want the 2012 Games back on U.S. soil. Why would we risk putting ourselves on the defensive with the IOC when we have so many other equally strong bid cities that don’t pose the same risk?”
Meanwhile, a new $130 million sports complex bearing the Home Depot name to be located in Carson, near Los Angeles, could help bring the 2012 Games back to U.S. soil.
Home Depot agreed to a 10-year deal worth $70 million and it could be built by June 2003.
U.S. Olympic Committee spokesman Mike Moran said the new facility could be named one of four U.S. Olympic training centres and could even get the attention of the international community.
He said, “oddly enough, even though Los Angeles lost out in its bid to become one of the four finalists for the 2012 Summer Games, this complex near Los Angeles may assist our chances of getting the Games (in the U.S.) in 2012″.
