By a show of hands, the IOC confirmed that Paris will host the 2024 Olympics, and Los Angeles will get the 2028 Olympics.
As expected, IOC members approved an agreement made among the two cities and IOC leaders earlier this summer to make the historic double award.
Before that, today’s meeting in Lima, Peru, was scheduled to be a vote between Paris and LA for the 2024 Games only. Recognizing the two strong bids, IOC leaders pushed this spring and summer to award Olympics and Paralympics to both cities this year.
LA and Paris gave 25-minute presentations Wednesday with speeches and videos to IOC members before the show of hands.
The LA 2028 speakers included Olympic champions Allyson Felix, Janet Evans and Angela Ruggiero. Michael Johnson, who turned 50 on Wednesday, was also in attendance.
USOC chairman Larry Probst spoke of perseverance.
The U.S. lost in bidding for 2012 (New York City) and 2016 (Chicago). Its original 2024 bid city, Boston, dropped out two years ago after lack of local support.
For LA, it started with a January 2013 letter from former mayor Antonio Villaraigosa to the USOC expressing interest in bidding for the 2024 Olympics. It was signed by Magic Johnson and Tom Hanks.
LA lost to Boston in the initial competition to be the U.S. host city before taking over quickly after Boston bowed out. It navigated a crowded original 2024 international bid race that saw Rome, Hamburg and Budapest all drop out.
“It has been a formidable journey to get here, but we never gave up hope,” Probst said in his speech Wednesday.
Paris’ presentation included a video titled, “24 words for Paris 2024” that featured Olympic judo champion Teddy Riner and Neymar, the Brazilian soccer gold medalist who last month transferred from FC Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain.
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Additionally, French president Emmanuel Macron spoke in a pre-recorded video.
“I wanted to re-emphasize here the full commitment of a whole country behind these Games,” Macron said. “In our world today, defending the values of Olympism also means working for greater balance, more multilateralism and towards a more inclusive, more sustainable society.”
The last time two Olympic hosts were determined at once was in 1921, when the 1924 Paris and 1928 Amsterdam Games were awarded, according to Olympstats.com. LA and Paris will join London as the only cities to host the Olympics three times.
The U.S. will host its first Olympics since 2002 (and first Summer Games since 1996). Paris will host for the first time since 1924.
The U.S. ends its longest drought between hosting an Olympics since the 28-year gap between 1932 and 1960. It failed in bids for 2012 (New York City) and 2016 (Chicago).
Paris was a finalist for 1992, 2008 and 2012.
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