Rybak declines to pursue 2024 Olympic bid

Don't believe the hype about Minneapolis pursuing the 2024 Olympics.

February 21, 2013 at 11:50PM
(The Minnesota Star Tribune)
(The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Don't believe the hype about Minneapolis pursuing the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Mayor R.T. Rybak sent a letter to the U.S. Olympic Committee on Thursday saying the city will not proceed with a bid for the games, which involves an "extraordinary commitment of time and resources."

Instead, he wrote, the city will focus on "large-scale, national-caliber events" like the Super Bowl and the Democratic National Convention.

His letter comes several days after the U.S. Olympic Committee reached out to more than 25 cities to gauge their interest in hosting the games.

The mayor said the city's tourism and convention board, Meet Minneapolis, has formed a "Local Organizing Committee" that will work to recruit major events. They will offer Minneapolis as a site for Olympic training and exhibition events "that are a good fit for us," Rybak said.

"Minneapolis fully supports the Olympic movement, and with the rest of the country, we are ready to support the next U.S. city that will proudly host the Olympic and Paralympic Games," Rybak wrote.

Here is the mayor's letter:

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