The Boston 2024 Olympic bid is patiently awaiting the expected United States Olympic Committee decision along with the rest of us. A ruling could come as early as Thursday evening, though nothing is confirmed yet. Meeting in the Denver International Airport, the USOC is choosing which bid from the four U.S. cities that they want to officially endorse.
While waiting, both the Boston 2024 bid, and the opposition to the bid (No Boston Olympics) commented on the process, and their thoughts as the momentous moment (possibly) approaches.
Speaking for the Boston 2024 Olympic bid, a spokesperson offered some very genuine thoughts:
No matter what happens today, I’ve never been more proud to be a Bostonian. This is a great day for Boston, no matter what the result. We’re very hopeful for the result, whether or not we move on. I personally have worked in politics, in the private sector, the not for profit, international, and frankly I have never seen a city galvanize around a big project like this. From the university community, to the government community, to the business community, to the individual citizens, to the athlete’s community, it’s really been inspiring. The Mayor’s leadership has been inspiring. The process and the journey has been really just a positive thing for the city, independent of the results. Of course, we’re really hopeful for a great result.
And that seems to be the prevailing attitude from the Boston 2024 bid: No matter what your opinion might be on hosting the Olympics in Boston, it’s tough to meet and interact with the bid’s volunteers and not at least be satisfied with their authenticity. They believe in their cause, and the Olympic movement.
The opposition to the bid, No Boston Olympics, has been providing an eloquent response to the enthusiasm of the 2024 bid for months. They also provided BostInno with a statement from a spokesperson about what will happen if Boston is chosen by the USOC over the other bids from Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington D.C:
If Boston2024 gets the nod, we plan to do all we can to give the people of Massachusetts the voice they’ve lacked in this process so far. That could be a ballot question, it could be working with the Legislature, it could be a combination of things. Ideally, at some point we’d have an up-or-down vote on whether any public funds should be used to back the Games.
As we work on holding Boston2024 accountable, we would certainly reach out to Massachusetts residents and welcome their input. People can sign up on our website (nobostonolympics.org) to join our movement and get email updates. If Boston is selected, we’ll also be holding an organizing meeting next Wednesday evening in Downtown Boston, exact location to-be-determined. Moving forward, we’ll have public forums, rallies, and discussions with all stakeholders impacted by this proposal. Multiple cities have spoken up in the past to block the Games, and there’s no reason why Massachusetts can’t do the same.
Essentially, this breaks down a clear divide in the two groups. Whereas the bid volunteers are much more idealistic (though not by any means devoid of details and plans), the opposition to the bid is readying themselves for what they would view as the worst case scenario: Boston being chosen as the official U.S. representative to go before the IOC in 2017 to get the 2024 Summer Games.
Stay tuned, as a decision could come very soon.
Image via Boston 2024
