(ATR) Leaders of the four bid cities vying to stage the 2024 Summer Olympics met with the IOC in Madrid for a two-day workshop.
The workshop began on Wednesday, April 6 and was the second technical meeting between IOC officials and the 2024 bid leaders from Budapest, Los Angeles, Paris and Rome. The first technical meeting took place in November as part of the revamped bidding process set forth by the Olympic Agenda 2020 reforms that seek to increase communication between the IOC and the bid cities.
The bids are now in phase two of the three-stage candidature process that is focused on governance, legal issues and venue funding. The first meeting of phase two set out to answer the bid cities’ questions regarding the Olympic Village, International Broadcasting Center and Main Press Center that were raised at the meeting in November.
"The Olympic Village and the IBC/MPC are two specific areas where the Candidate Cities requested further information in order to find optimal, cost-effective technical solutions best suited to meeting the long-term needs of the city while developing their Olympic projects," the IOC said in a statement.
Led by associate director of Olympic candidatures Jacqueline Barrett and Olympic Broadcasting Services chief executive officer Yiannis Exarchos, the aim of the workshop was to "demonstrate to the cities that there is not a one-size-fits-all solution and how early planning can lead to extensive cost savings," said Barrett.
Barrett and Exarchos reviewed plans from previous Olympics, best practices and legacy case studies with the bid leaders and described how these examples could be applied to each city. Exarchos says the legacy of the villages is often overlooked in host cities.
"IBCs from previous Games have historically been facilities that have proven to be integral to the continuing economic and cultural growth of the host city," he says. "From the workshop, it was clear that this same opportunity exists for each of the four Candidate Cities."
Budapest 2024 was represented in Madrid by director of architecture and urban planning Sandor Finta, Beatrix Frankfurt of venues and transport and Szombor Barta of sustainability and legacy. Finta says the timing of the workshop was ideal to allow ample time to develop its strategy for the villages.
"The workshop was a fantastic opportunity for us to discuss our bid projects and learn about these facilities, and understand the priorities of the key stakeholders," Finta said.
Los Angeles 2024 chief executive officer Gene Sykes led the city’s delegation at the meeting. He says Los Angeles is "always eager to learn from the IOC".
"It was extremely useful in giving us a greater understanding of what is required to deliver a technically outstanding Olympic Village and IBC and MPC."
Paris 2024 chief executive officer Etienne Thobois said the meeting was "very useful to boost our learning curve".
"We were provided with invaluable advice that will help us better fulfill the needs of the various clients groups," he said. "Appropriate design and smart planning is very important to deliver the Games in the most efficient and cost-effective way."
General coordinator for Rome 2024 Diana Bianchedi said Rome welcomed the opportunity to go over its plans in more detail with IOC officials.
"We will use the feedback to refine our preliminary designs," she says. "We look forward to further discussions as the process progresses."
The bid cities will use the advice from the workshop to help formulate the second candidature files due to the IOC on Oct. 7. The third and final phase of the bidding process begins in December.
The IOC will select the host city at the IOC Session in September 2017.
Written by Kevin Nutley
Forgeneral comments or questions, click here.
20 Years at #1: Your best source of news about theOlympics is AroundTheRings.com, for subscribersonly.
Recent Articles
Sinner-Alcaraz, the duel that came to succeed the three phenomenons
Beyond the final result, Roland Garros left the feeling that the Italian and the Spaniard will shape the great duel that came to help us through the duel for the end of the Federer-Nadal-Djokovic era.
Table tennis: Brazil’s Bruna Costa Alexandre will be Olympic and Paralympic in Paris 2024
She is the third in her sport and the seventh athlete to achieve it in the same edition; in Santiago 2023 she was the first athlete with disabilities to compete at the Pan American level and won a medal.
Rugby 7s: the best player of 2023 would only play the medal match in Paris
Argentinian Rodrigo Isgró received a five-game suspension for an indiscipline in the circuit’s decisive clash that would exclude him until the final or the bronze match; the Federation will seek to make the appeal successful.
Rhonex Kipruto, owner of the world record for the 10000 meters on the road, was suspended for six years
The Kenyan received the maximum sanction for irregularities in his biological passport and the Court considered that he was part of a system of “deliberate and sophisticated doping” to improve his performance. He will lose his record and the bronze medal at the Doha World Cup.
Katie Ledecky spoke about doping Chinese swimmers: “It’s difficult to go to Paris knowing that we’re going to compete with some of these athletes”
The American, a seven-time Olympic champion, referred to the case of the 23 positive controls before the Tokyo Games that were announced a few weeks ago and shook the swimming world. “I think our faith in some of the systems is at an all-time low,” he said.
