[UncoonsKala]

June 5, 2008

Chicago Stays in Running After Early Vote to Decide Host of 2016 Olympics

By JULIET MACUR

Chicago joined three cities Wednesday in moving a step closer to becoming the host of the 2016 Olympics, setting up a final, fierce race to see which one will hold those Summer Games.

At a meeting in Athens, the International Olympic Committee announced that Chicago, Madrid, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo made the last cut. Doha, Qatar; Prague; and Baku, Azerbaijan, were dropped from the competition.

“This is a great day for Chicago,” Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley said in a statement. “I want to thank the International Olympic Committee for this vote of confidence in our city.”

A flap over revenue sharing between the I.O.C. and the United States Olympic Committee arose during the meetings before Wednesday’s vote, adding some tension. The Dutch I.O.C. member Hein Verbruggen called the U.S.O.C.’s revenue percentage an “immoral amount of money compared to what other people get.”

The U.S.O.C. spokesman Darryl Seibel said the rift over finances should not affect Chicago’s chances to win the 2016 Games when the I.O.C.’s 110 members vote in October 2009.

“We’re concerned about the timing,” Seibel said. “But at the end of the day, this issue is separate and apart from our bid. Our bid should be and will be evaluated on its merits.”

Before this week’s vote, the I.O.C.’s executive board evaluated each candidate city based on its technical abilities to host the Games, looking at 11 categories that included general infrastructure, safety and security, sports venues, Olympic village and transportation.

Tokyo finished first in the rankings, with Madrid not far behind. Chicago and Doha tied for third. Prague and Baku finished sixth and seventh.

Rio was fifth, but made the top four because the I.O.C. frowned upon Doha’s proposal to hold the Games in October to avoid the Middle Eastern summer.

“It would disrupt athletes’ training programs and overload the sports schedule at an already busy time of the year,” the I.O.C. spokeswoman Giselle Davies said, according to The Associated Press.

The candidate cities have until February to prepare a detailed description of their bid. Despite its third-place finish in this round, Chicago’s bid is still viable. During the bidding for the 2012 Olympics, London, the eventual winner, was third at this phase of the vote, with Paris first and Madrid second.

Chicago finished fifth in some categories, including sports venues and transportation. The I.O.C. board raised the support that Chicago’s government has given for the city’s bid for the Games, saying the wording in the bid did not conform to I.O.C. rules. The board also questioned the construction estimates for the venues, saying they were too low.

The transportation along Lake Michigan, where some of the Olympic sites would be located, needs to be improved because there is no link to rail lines, the evaluation said.

“We are going to study the report and we’re going to learn from that and correct all the deficiencies,” The Associated Press quoted Chicago’s bid leader, Patrick Ryan, as saying.

United States Olympic officials plan to continue talks with their international counterparts to end the disagreement over revenue sharing long before the final vote on the 2016 Olympic city. United States officials have submitted proposals regarding changes in the revenue sharing, but those proposals have been rejected.

The U.S.O.C., which receives no government funding, receives 12.75 percent of United States broadcast rights fees and 20 percent of the I.O.C.’s global marketing revenues. I.O.C. officials want to reduce those percentages.

Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company