Boston drops bid for 2024 Olympics
Boston has rescinded its bid to host the 2024 Olympics, leaving the U.S. Olympic Committee looking for another city to compete against potential international hosts.
The USOC had asked Boston Mayor Marty Walsh to sign a contract now, and he said Monday, “I cannot commit to putting the taxpayers at risk. If committing to signing a guarantee today is what’s required to move forward, then Boston is no longer pursuing the Olympic and Paralympic Games.”
Walsh said he did not have enough time to put an insurance plan in place that would protect taxpayers against cost overruns.
“I will not sign a document that puts one dollar of taxpayers’ money on the line for one penny of overruns on the Olympics,” he said.
That leaves Los Angeles as the most likely fallback option if the U.S. is going to make a bid by the International Olympic Committee’s Sept. 15 deadline.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said Monday, “I would be happy to engage in discussions with the USOC about how to present the strongest and most fiscally responsible bid on behalf of our city and nation.”
The IOC will not select the host city until 2017, but the USOC wants an early commitment by a U.S. city to avoid the problems that occurred with the bids by New York for the 2012 Games and Chicago for the 2016 Games.
The United States last hosted the Summer Olympics in 1996, when they were staged in Atlanta. Los Angeles last hosted the Olympics in 1984.