Philly misses out on 2016 Olympic Games

By Michelle Talisesky
Collegian Reporter
August 30, 2006

A typical American image of Philadelphia is that of the “City of Brotherly Love,” the home of the best cheesesteaks, and the birthplace of our nation. When the international community thinks of Philadelphia, however, what do they see?

This question was on the minds of the USOC when it rejected Philadelphia’s bid to host the 2016 Olympic Games because of a lack of an international image. According to the USOC, the members of the international community had no sense of Philadelphia. They think of Philly as just another American city without the special attributes necessary to draw a large crowd to the Olympic Games.

Philadelphia tried its best to present its better qualities to the executives of the USOC under the direction of co-chairman Joseph M. Torsella. Torsella and two others from the Philly 2016 Committee traveled to La Jolla, Calif. to present their pitch before a USOC delegation led by Peter Ueberroth.

In the pitch, the Philly 2016 Committee attempted to address the concerns of the USOC: “We know that Philadelphia is a blank slate to the international Olympic community. But that might not be such a bad thing. After all, lots of people around the world aren’t happy with the United States these days. They dislike our foreign policy; they resent our culture. The good news is that they don’t particularly associate any of that with Philadelphia. And what much of the world still loves is the idea of America. Philadelphia is the embodiment of the American idea; it’s the home of Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell, the place where the Declaration of Independence and Constitution were written.”

While the Philly 2016 Committee tried to encourage the Olympic Committee executives to see Philadelphia through the eyes of its citizens, the executives saw Philadelphia more for what it is not. They believe the city lacks the image that the international community associates with America, as well as a reliable transportation system and proper facilities to host such a large event.

The committee reviewed the pitches for four weeks before eliminating Philadelphia and Houston on July 26. Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco remain in the competition, to be decided by March 2007.

The Philadelphia 2016 Olympic bid committee blames the failed bid mostly on the lack of an international image, but despite overwhelming local support for the games, the city’s transportation and facilities must also have come into play.

Another factor that diminished any last dwindling hope of hosting the 2016 Olympics was the weight the USOC put on interviews that were conducted with 100 international sports leaders, the majority of whom said they did not think of Philadelphia as a place that had the ability to host the games.

The failure to obtain an Olympic bid diminished the hopes of many Philadelphians to have the opportunity to put the city on the map, but Torsella and co-chair David L. Cohen said they had no regrets about the lost bid.

Now the challenge for Philadelphia is to create a positive image in the international sports community, which will take years, said Torsella. One way to begin would be to host more international sporting events, which the city will explore through a partnership with the USOC.

If Philadelphia continues to make improvements to its aging facilities, as well as start hosting more international sports games, an improvement in the city’s international visibility could lead to the Olympics in the “City of Brotherly Love.”

taliseskym1@lasalle.edu