Los Angeles agree deal for 2028 Olympics with Donald Trump help, Paris to host 2024 games
LOS ANGELES has reached a deal to stage the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games - with their bid committee thanking President Donald Trump for his help.
The LA Bid Committee and the International Olympic Committee announced last night they had come to an agreement over the Host City Contract for 2028.
The deal now needs to be ratified by the Los Angeles City Council on Friday and, once that has happened, the announcement of Paris as the 2024 hosts and LA as the 2028 ones can be rubber-stamped.
Both LA and Paris had been bidding for the 2024 Games and the IOC told the two to work out a plan or face going to a vote.
That vote - which would have been held at the 131st IOC session in Lima in Peru - will now not take place. That session will instead see the final ratification of the two venues.
A statement from the LA Bid Committee said: "Since his election, President Trump has been personally involved in helping to make LA's bid a truly American bid and the White House Office of American Innovation and the US Senate and House of Representatives have been true partners throughout.
"The USOC and Los Angeles bid team greatly appreciate their strong commitment to bringing the Olympic and Paralympic Games back to the United States."
LA mayor Eric Garcetti added: "This is an historic day for Los Angeles, for the United States and for the Olympic and Paralympic Movements around the world. Today, we take a major step toward bringing the Games back to our city for the first time in a generation and begin a new chapter in Los Angeles' timeless Olympic story.
"This agreement with the IOC will allow us to seed a legacy of hope and opportunity that will lift up every community in Los Angeles - not in 11 years' time, but starting now and continuing in the years leading up to the Games. LA 2028 will kick-start our drive to make LA the healthiest city in America, by making youth sports more affordable and accessible than ever before."
The announcement means the usual seven-year gap between the award and staging of a games will be waived for 2024.
With LA stepping aside and letting Paris take on 2024, it is to be given £1.8billion by the IOC, giving assistance for the additional four years of host-city related costs.
It will also give the Californian city more time to complete its already-scheduled transport infrastructure improvements, although its venues are all ready for use now.
The two cities were the only ones left in the race for 2024 after Budapest, Hamburg and Rome withdrew.
LA hosted the games in 1932 and 1984, with Paris doing so in 1900 and 1924, meaning 2024 will be a 100th centenary celebration.