Dr. Dre, David Geffen, and LAUSD's Michelle King Join LA's Olympics Push

LOS ANGELES, CA — Rap music icon Dr. Dre, real estate developer Rick Caruso, opera singer and director of the Los Angeles Opera Placido Domingo, music mogul David Geffen and L.A. Unified School District Superintendent Michelle King were announced Thursday as among the new members of the LA 2024 Board of Directors.

The board has 117 members in total, including a long list of professional sports executives that were announced Wednesday, and also includes a wide array of prominent figures from the world of entertainment, media, business and public sectors.

"The world is changing, and so are the needs of the Olympic and Paralympic Movements. This calls for new thinking, and that is precisely what the diverse group of 117 leaders and innovators on LA 2024's Board of Directors brings to L.A.'s bid for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games," LA 2024 Chairman Casey Wasserman said.

" LA 2024's low-risk proposal has earned 88 percent public support for the Games and does not require building any new permanent venues. That means that instead of focusing on complex and costly construction projects, we can dedicate this group's incredible energy and creativity to connecting the Games to the future."

Other prominent board members are Rusty Hicks, the executive secretary- treasurer of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor AFL-CIO, Archbishop Jose Gomez of Los Angeles, 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch, University of California President Janet Napolitano, Electronic Arts Chariman Larry Probst, California Institute of Technology President Thomas F. Rosenbaum and Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Gary Toebben.

LA 2024's Board is led by Wasserman, CEO Gene Sykes and five Vice Chairs -- former Olympic champion Janet Evans, former Paralympic champion Candace Cable, Los Angeles Lakers President of Basketball Operations Earvin Magic" Johnson, The Walt Disney Company Chairman and CEO Bob Iger and UNITE HERE Vice President Maria Elena Durazo.

LA 2024 also said that board members have donated more than $50 million to help finance LA 2024's operations.

"L.A. is a vibrant, youthful city, focused on the future, and the LA 2024 board embraces that ethos," Sykes said. "On behalf of the LA 2024 team, I want to thank the board for supporting our Olympic and Paralympic bid to restore the credibility of the Games, ensure financial stability for the Olympic and Paralympic movements and reconnect the Games with young people around the world."

Los Angeles is in competition for the Games with Paris, and the host city will be selected by the International Olympic Committee in September, although L.A. could be awarded the 2028 Olympics instead of the '24 Games.

The full list of the board can be found at LA24.org.

City News Service