Los Angeles is certainly making its intentions known in the race to earn a U.S. bid for the 2024 Olympics.
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a recommendation to send a signed letter to the U.S. Olympic Committee “expressing the board’s desire to bring the 2024 Olympics to Los Angeles” on Tuesday, according to the Los Angeles Daily News.
“Los Angeles is home to more Olympians than anywhere in the world, and has twice hosted the summer Olympic Games,” said Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, according to the newspaper.
Los Angeles first expressed interest in March, a month after the USOC sent letters to mayors of 35 cities to gauge interest in potential 2024 bids. That’s when mayor Antonio Villaraigosa replied with a letter to the USOC, expressing “enthusiastic interest.”
Villaraigosa’s term as mayor since ended. New mayor Eric Garcetti also sent a letter to the USOC in July.
Los Angeles is the only U.S. city to host two Summer Olympics — 1932 and 1984. It made unsuccessful tries to be the U.S. bid for 2012 and 2016, losing to New York and Chicago, respectively.
The U.S. hasn’t hosted an Olympics since the 2002 Winter Games and is in the middle of its longest stretch between hosting Olympics since a 28-year gap between 1932 and 1960.
USOC chairman Larry Probst said 2024 Olympic bidding will be talked about at USOC meetings in December, when a timetable for the selection of a city could be created. Bidding for the 2024 Olympic host begins in 2015, and the IOC will vote in 2017.
Washington, D.C., Dallas and Philadelphia are among other cities that have expressed interest.
