Members of International Olympic Committee team arrive for 2016 evaluation
Commission arrives amid protests, Blago news, but skyline impresses
The best and worst of local politics greeted International Olympic Committee officials arriving Thursday for the start of an intense evaluation of Chicago's bid to host the 2016 Summer Games.
Several members of the 13-member evaluation commission, including the head of the delegation, Nawal El Moutawakel of Morocco -- arrived at O'Hare Airport by late morning, welcomed by a group of city ambassadors, including Mayor Daley.
(Rich Hein/Sun-Times)
But by 5 p.m., after the rest of the evaluation team arrived, former Gov. Rod Blagojevich had been indicted on corruption charges in a downtown federal courthouse.
As caravans of black Chevy Suburbans ferried the 13-member evaluation team to downtown's tony Fairmont Hotel -- their home during their six-day visit -- a picket by Chicago Police officers over wages and working conditions was winding down and a group called "No Games Chicago" was gearing up to rally and march against the bid and its $4.8 billion price tag.
"First, the former governor never had any role in our Olympic bid," said Patrick Sandusky, a spokesman for the Chicago 2016 bid.
As for the protest late in the day, Sandusky said the evaluation team "understands people's right to protest, and I don't think it will impact our ability to win the bid."
Chicago 2016 Chief Executive Officer Pat Ryan was among those greeting the delegation Thursday, and he had a chance to gauge their first impression.
"They were very impressed,'' he said. "They were impressed with the skyline."
The IOC's evaluation team, arriving at the Fairmont sporadically, didn't field reporters' questions.
And they won't be meeting with the Chicago 2016 bid team until Saturday, the official start of a four-day evaluation of the city. Chicago is one of four finalists to host the games along with Rio de Janeiro, Madrid and Tokyo.
However, the delegates will hold closed-door meetings today, and a source familiar with the process says the group may have already begun chatting about the city's bid book and any questions or concerns they want to address.
The evaluation team will be looking at everything from the proposed sporting venues to the city's transit system and to just how the bid team expects to cover the costs. The 13 members' grades will then be forwarded to the 100-plus members of the International Olympic Committee, which will pick a winner Oct. 2 in Copenhagen.
That was the issue raised at a Thursday afternoon Loop rally when about 200 people joined the group "No Games Chicago."
"They don't fix the streets, they're closing down mental health clinics, they're closing schools, but they want to throw a party with taxpayer dollars," said Rhoda Whitehorse of Old Town, whose doesn't believe promises that private dollars will be raised to hold the Games.