Appearing on WGBH’s “Greater Boston” on Wednesday night, Boston 2024 partnership president Dan O’Connell answered the question that many in Boston have been thinking for nearly two weeks now: Will the range of community meetings over the next few months have any impact on if (and not how) a bid will be submitted to the International Olympic Committee. The question, posed to him by show host Adam Reilly, was as follows:

Just to be clear: There’s no way that the public could weigh in and say, ‘We don’t want these Games,’ and make you and other organizers say, ‘We’re going to drop this.’ The outcome has been decided. It’s a question of fine tuning it or redirecting it?

O’Connell responded:

I think it’s a question of putting the best bid forward that we can as the city of Boston. And I’ve sensed – I’ve been on this for quite a while, starting with the feasibility commission – overwhelming support in the city for pursuing this effort.

While it might not sound like a milestone, the reality is that this was essentially the first time that someone involved with the bid went beyond merely implying the “possibility” of a bid, and outlined the conversation more as a way of “putting the best bid forward.”

Reilly’s full interview, seen in the video above, is a quality piece that’s worth a watch. He hits on several of the key questions that all Bostonians, pro or anti-Olympics, are curious to hear more about.

Featured image via Boston 2024