Although she will make a decision by June whether Paris should bid for the 2024 Summer Olympic Games, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said on France Inter radio Thursday, “now, we’re in the process of being able to take on this bid”.
Last November the mayor reportedly expressed concerns about the specter of white elephants if France hosted the Games, but in February she welcomed the results of a feasibility study and warmed up to the idea of a bid.
Thursday Hidalgo said, “the sports movement has asked itself the right questions: ‘Why did we lose? What is required to build a successful bid? How much does it cost? What ecological mark will the Games make?'”
Hidalgo said, “a massive effort can be made, through a big competition like the Games, to help an area transform itself by getting all the people involved”.
Prime Minister Manuel Valls endorsed Paris’ candidacy for the World’s Fair in 2025. President Francois Hollande, who has supported a Paris Olympic bid, has said both events can be pursued at the same time.
Paris hosted the 1924 Summer Games but was unsuccessful in its bid for the 1992, 2008 and 2012 Games. France also failed in Annecy’s bid for the 2018 Games.
Rome and Boston are the only declared bidders so far for the 2024 Games, though Germany is expected to nominate either Hamburg or Berlin next week. The deadline for the submission of bids is September 15 with a vote by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 2017.
