USOC Says Chicago Not The Favorite for 2016

By Margaret Lyons in News on Apr 16, 2008 4:35PM

United States Olympic Committee Chairman Peter Ueberroth said yesterday that Chicago is nowhere near being the front-runner for the 2016 Olympics. The IOC will narrow down the list of seven applicant cities—us, Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo, Madrid, Doha, Prague, and Baku—in June and a final decision will be announced in October 2009.

Ueberroth said Tuesday Chicago residents should be "proud" of the ongoing efforts to bring the Olympics here, but added that the city still has to work on a "handful" of issues, which he would not disclose.

Chicago's greatest strength is its ethnic diversity, and the city must keep pressing that asset to the International Olympic Committee to stay in the game, he said. "Chicago is a rookie in this [Olympic] arena," Ueberroth said.

Patrick Ryan, chairman and CEO of the Chicago 2016 bid committee, says he doesn't mind Chicago not being the favorite, and Mayor Daley says we should focus on making the first round of cuts.

According to the poll results released yesterday, 84 percent of Chicago-area residents are behind the plan, with 54 percent saying they "strongly support" and 30 percent saying they "somewhat support" support hosting the 2016 Olympics. Only 6 percent say they "somewhat oppose," and another six say they "strongly oppose" the games. [S-T, AP, Chicago 2016 press release]