Olympic Committee Decides To Pick LA or Paris For 2024 and 2028 Hosts: UPDATED

LOS ANGELES, CA – The executive board of the International Olympic Committee decided Friday to announce which cities will host the Olympic and Paralympic games in both 2024 and 2028 -- not just the 2024 host.

The only two contenders for the 2024 games are Los Angeles and Paris, with Paris regarded as the favorite.

IOC President Thomas Bach said after a meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland, that the body's board had "unanimously approved" the unprecedented double- announcement decision.

The full IOC is meeting in Lausanne in July and will have to ratify the board's decision. The host cities would then be chosen in September at a meeting in Lima, Peru.

Paris has said it has to go first because the site it has earmarked for its Olympic Village will not be available for redevelopment after 2024, although there was no immediate indication that the claim influenced the IOC decision.

Although there has been no official confirmation, reports have indicated the IOC is leaning toward awarding Paris the 2024 Games and Los Angeles the games four years later.

Casey Wasserman, chairman of LA 2024, the body spearheading the campaign to bring the games to Los Angeles, released a statement Wednesday that appeared to concede the 2024 Games, although he stopped just short of doing so.

To be blunt, LA 2024 has never been only about L.A. or 2024. Even when the issue of a dual award for the 2024 and 2028 Games was initially raised, we didn't say it's `L.A. first' or it's `now or never' for L.A. That sounds like an ultimatum," Wasserman said.

Wasserman said the LA bid requires no public funding and all the facilities are either built or being built anyway.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Wasserman released a joint statement praising the IOC board's decision.

"We welcome the IOC Executive Board's decision to recognize two excellent bids from two of the world's greatest cities. With no new permanent venues to build and unwavering public support, Los Angeles is an eternal Olympic city and ideal partner for the IOC," Garcetti and Wasserman said.

``We look forward to sharing our unique story with the IOC membership in July and working together to offer the best path forward for our city and the Olympic Movement's future."

City News Service