By Evan Weiner |
One of the consequences of the COVID-19 business shutdown is the loss of tax revenue for states and cities and that figures to impact the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Committee. After all, Los Angeles and California have each pledged $250 million to help with the projected Los Angeles 2028 Olympics expenses. You have to start wondering why Casey Wasserman, who heads up the Los Angeles bid committee, isn’t in Washington lobbying the Senate Majority Leader, the Kentucky Republican Mitch McConnell, stressing the need for the federal government to start helping out economically broken states and cities. Wasserman does have one advantage, the LA Olympics event is still eight years away. There is no imminent threat of the Games being canceled. Japan may lose hundreds of millions of dollars if the country cannot hold the postponed 2020 Summer Olympics in 2021. IOC officials have warned if Tokyo cannot hold the event in the summer of 2021 because of COVID-19, the Games will be canceled. There is some concern that the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics could also face a postponement. In France, politicians in Paris have sounded an alarm about the city hosting the 2024 Summer Olympics and that the city political and business leaders should rethink the Paris 2024 Olympics plan. Paris and France are in a recession.
The local political and business leaders behind the 2030 Salt Lake City Olympic bid have been quiet about their plans to land the event. Utah and federal money will be needed for a bid as that is what the International Olympic Committee demands from those pushing to be awarded an Olympics. Sapporo, Japan seems to be Salt Lake City’s lone competitor in the race to get the 2030 Winter Olympics. In Australia, the Queensland local government and Australian Olympic Committee have put a hold on a 2032 Olympics bid. COVID-19 is impacting the Olympics.
This article was republished with permission from the original publisher, Evan Weiner.