Sports

2024 Summer Olympic Games: Boston's Bid Heavily Relies on City's Colleges

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The city of Boston is making an effort to host the 2024 Summer Olympics and their 100 colleges and universities figure to be an integral part of the bidding process.

According to the Associated Press, Boston's biggest selling point for hosting the games would be to utilize new technology and the city's resources to bring the cost down as much as possible. One surefire way to do so heavily involves the city's colleges.

The city has the required minimum of 45,000 hotel rooms and current renovations to public transportation would help their cause further. What's more is UMass - Boston is adding another 5,000 rooms as part of their transformation from a commuter school to a residential one.

Boston would also be able to convert Fenway Park to host other athletic events. Harvard Stadium has hosted Olympic soccer matches before as well.

"It was spectacular to see the Olympic flags flying over the Stadium," Dan O'Connell, the president of Boston 2024, a group campaigning for the city's Olympic bid. "I can't wait to see it again."

But Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington would also like to host the 2024 games, WCVB Boston reported, and the blueprint appears to be the same: keep it under $5 billion. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has been abundantly clear that future bids are to be cost-efficient.

The 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia cost an estimated $51 billion and a lot of scrutiny swirled around Brazil for the World Cup and the massive expenses there. While the winning city may not actually spend less than $5 billion, it is apparently a mandate to try.

Boston, for its part, is planning to use as little temporary construction as possible, like using college campuses for an Olympic Village, or hiring international exchange students as translators. Boston would also plan to have the most compact Olympic games as possible in order to eliminate private parking and maximize the use of public transportation.

To solidify their chances for the bid, Boston would have to make the planned public transportation upgrade worthwhile. The city would also need a main stadium suitable for the all the track and field events.

Either way, it seems as though sustainability and reusability are the ways to win the 2024 bid.

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