It’s been over 18 years and counting since the United States has hosted the Summer Olympics. San Francisco is hoping to change that.
According to SFGate.com, the Northern California city is setting to submit a bid to hold the 2024 Summer Games. The plan is led by San Francisco Giants President and CEO Larry Baer, who ha very big and very different ideas for the international sports games.
“We have a lot of reverence for the Olympics … but there may be some ways to modernize the Games or do it a little differently,” Baer said.
The San Francisco-based website reported that the city will be competing against other U.S. destinations like Los Angeles, Boston, and Washington D.C. for the backing of the nation’s Olympic Committee.
Hosting the Olympics at the city would result in a $4.5 billion spending, which would include a $350 million “pop-up” stadium, table tennis in Chinatown, and beach volleyball in front of City Hall.
“Some of this budget could potentially fund and accelerate projects that are in the pipeline for transportation links (and) housing,” Baer said, referring to the hefty distribution of funds.
Although the amount is excessive, venture capitalist Steve Strandberg trusts the expense would ultimately improve and economically fortify the area.
“The Olympic Games could give us the economic and civic will to do some things that maybe we should have done a while ago in terms of reconnecting parts of our city,” Strandberg said.
If all goes well and San Francisco’s offer tops the other three American cities, it still faces tough competition: Germany – winner of the 2014 World Cup – has already announced it wants to host the 2024 show, Fox Sports News reports.
On top of that, Paris could potentially submit a bid via crowd funding support, according to AP Sports.
The U.S. committee is expected to decide early next year if they want to pursue the 2024 Olympics and which city it will choose to submit. Though if yesteryear’s outcomes tell us anything about San Francisco’s previous bids – 2008, 2012, and 2016 bids didn’t make the cut – then perhaps it’s best the Bay Area really lights a fire under their a** this time around.
