In a historic decision, the United States Olympic Committee has selected Boston’s bid as a possible host for the 2024 Summer Olympics. The decision, announced moments ago, means that Boston could be the official U.S. bid for the Games, and will compete against other international bids if the Committee likes everything that they see in the evaluation process. This does not mean that Boston is definitely hosting the 2024 Games. Far from it, yet it does mean that Boston is officially one step closer.

 

Now, the USOC will begin sending official representatives to Boston to start working with members of the Boston 2024 bid, and assessing the concrete details involved with a possible Boston Olympics. If they are not satisfied with what they see, the bid will not go forward. Yet if they do like what they see, Boston will formally jump into the race later this year.

Key facts to know

Who Boston beat from the U.S. to get the USOC approval:

Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington D.C.

Does this mean that Boston is officially bidding for the Games?

Not exactly. As was mentioned before, the selection from the USOC merely means that they think Boston has the best chance out of the other three U.S. cities. They now evaluate Boston over the next few months, and will make a formal choice later in 2015.

Can the local public block a bid if the USOC goes ahead with it?

Absolutely, though it’s not as easy as you might think. No Boston Olympics spokesman Chris Dempsey explained how a ballot block might work in this post from Boston.com’s Adam Vaccaro.

Who will be competing with Boston for the bid?

Doha (Qatar), Istanbul, Paris and Rome have all been rumored to make a bid, as well as a possible South African entry. The most promising bid would probably come from Germany, who will choose either Hamburg or Berlin.

When will we know if Boston has the bid or not?

In 2017, when the International Olympic Committee decides during a formal session in Lima, Peru.

Image via Boston 2024

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