A Denver bid for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games was reinforced Thursday when U.S. Senator Michael Bennet, co-chair of the Congressional Olympic and Paralympic Caucus, wrote to the chair of the United States Olympic Committee’s board of directors (USOC) Thursday asking for a quick resolution to a revenue-sharing conflict with the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
The USOC decided last month not to submit any U.S. bids for the 2020 Summer Games, stirring up interest in a Denver bid for 2022.
Bennet asked USOC board chairman Larry Probst for a quick resolution to the conflict to allow leaders in Denver and the Rocky Mountain region to “continue the necessary work and preparation to produce a successful bid to host a future Olympic Games”.
Bennet wrote, “it is my understanding that the USOC has decided to withhold submitting any bids to host the Olympics until an agreement over revenue sharing can be reached with the IOC. State and local officials in Colorado will find it difficult to advance preparations for a possible bid without a sense of certainty that the USOC would be willing to move forward. A timely resolution to this matter would only serve to benefit American cities considering a bid to serve as a host city to a future Olympic Games.
“As you are aware, the work and preparation that it takes to produce a winning bid is extensive. It would be unfortunate if the current impasse undermined these efforts”.
