Cincinnati has traditionally had an undeserved reputation for underachieving. "When the end of the world comes, I want to be in Cincinnati because it's always twenty years behind the times," Mark Twain said. And even though the veracity of this quote is highly questionable, naysayers still love to parrot it.
In the late 1990s, though, a group of ambitious leaders in the Queen City, led by a PR man named Nick Vehr, attempted to bring the 2012 Olympic Games to Cincinnati. Inspired by the overall success of the games hosted a few years earlier in Atlanta, Vehr and his team felt the same could happen in Southwest Ohio. The Cincinnati Olympic bid committee, officially Cincinnati 2012 Inc., was facing a tough job. Several challenges lay ahead.
The first issue was finding enough suitable venues. For that, there was a three-pronged solution. The first was to use existing stadiums and arenas. The second involved using facilities in neighboring cities like Dayton, Columbus, and even Cleveland. The third was to build new ones if necessary.
Holding some Olympic events outside of Greater Cincinnati wasn’t all that far-fetched. Most of the events at the Atlanta games were held in the metro area. Some, though, were held in Columbus, GA, in the southwest part of the state. Savannah, on the Atlantic coast, was also utilized. Birmingham, AL, Washington, D.C., and the Florida cities of Tampa, Orlando, and Miami also hosted events.
In addition to using Riverfront Stadium (then Cinergy Stadium), or its replacement, planners also sought to use Firstar Center (formerly Riverfront Coliseum, now Heritage Bank Center), Paul Brown Stadium, and even the Cincinnati Gardens. There was also a plan to put a dome on UC’s Nippert Stadium. The university’s other venues would also be used.
Additionally, a huge Olympic village, including an 80,000 seat stadium, would have been built immediately west of Longworth Hall in Queensgate. After the games, the stadium would have been reconfigured into a smaller venue, possibly for an expansion team in the then three-year-old Major League Soccer.
Cincinnati Olympic 2012 Inc. raised over $5.5 million but was confronted with several issues beyond its control, one of which was the riots in spring 2001. While things had calmed down, many said the situation would give the U.S. Olympic Committee pause.
Another problem was Issue 3, which passed a few years earlier. That measure amended the city's charter and prohibited extending legal protection to homosexuals. Today, it’s hard to believe that such a thing was possible, but back then it did happen.
Officials in Atlanta had faced a similar problem when they were planning for the 1996 games. Neighboring Cobb County had passed a resolution condemning the “gay lifestyle.” In response, Atlanta organizers re-routed the path of the Olympic torch and moved the site of the volleyball contests out of Cobb County and out to Athens.
Even without those issues, transportation and lodging became areas of concern. Hotels and other lodgings could be built in time for the games. However, moving people around greater Cincinnati, and to outlying venues in Cleveland, Dayton, and Columbus, was a bigger challenge.
The city’s prospects took another hit when it was reported in August by the Washington Post that “the IOC will never again award the games to another second-tier U.S. city like Atlanta.'” Ouch for Atlanta, and not great news for the bidding cities of Dallas/Ft. Worth, Tampa/Orlando, Houston, and of course, Cincinnati.
In October, the ax finally fell as the United States Olympic Committee took the first step to name its candidate to play host to the 2012 Summer Olympics whittling down the roster of hopefuls to New York, Baltimore/Washington, San Francisco, and Houston. Cincinnati, along with Los Angeles, Tampa/Orlando, and Dallas/Ft. Worth was all eliminated. London, England was the eventual winner.
Whether or not it was accurate at the time, the notion that the IOC would only focus on large, international cities to host future summer games turned out to be true. In addition to London, subsequent games were awarded to Rio de Janeiro (2016), Tokyo (2020), Paris (2024), and Los Angeles (2028). Oddly, the 2032 games were awarded to Brisbane, Australia. No doubt a fine town, but not necessarily the first city one thinks of as international in that part of the world. Who knows? Cincinnati’s Olympic dreams may yet be realized.
131 comments
Katherine Griffith
Hello everyone, I wish to share my testimonies with the general public about Dr Kachi for helping me to win the LOTTO MAX, i have been playing all types of lottery for the past 9years now. the only big money i have ever win was $3000 ever since things became worse to enduring because i couldn’t been able to win again, i was not happy i need help to win the lottery, until the day i was reading a newspaper online which so many people has talked good things about best lottery cast Dr Kachi who can change your life into riches. So I contacted him and he cast the spell and gave me the hot figures. I played the LOTTO MAX DRAW Behold when I went to check and to my greatest surprise my name came out as one of the winners. I won $60 Millions Dr Kachi, your spell made it wonderful to win the lottery. I can’t believe it. Thank you so much sir for dedicating your time to cast the Lottery spell for me. I am eternally grateful for the lottery spell winning Dr Kachi did for me. I’m now out of debts and experiencing the most amazing good life of the lottery after I won a huge amount of money. I am more excited now than I ever have been in my life. In case you also need him to help you win, you can contact: drkachispellcast@gmail.com OR Call/WhatsApp number: +1 (209) 893-8075 Visit his Website: https://drkachispellcast0.wixsite.com/my-site
Gerald Muswagon
I want to genuinely thank Dr Ayoola for making my dream come through. I was on the internet when I saw people posting and talking about Dr Ayoola. On How he has help them in winning lottery. My name is Gerald Muswagon this is my story on how I win $10 million After reading the article about Dr Ayoola I contacted him I told him to help me win lottery he respond to me by saying he will help me after working with him he assured me that I will win. Which I believe. After working with Dr Ayoola he gave me a number and ask me to go and play it which I did today I’m here shearing a testimony about this same man Dr Ayoola help me to win $10 million dollars all thanks to you Dr I will keep taking about your good because you are a man of your word I hope people that really need this will come across it for you to help them as well. If you want to win big in lottery contact Dr Ayoola today and be rest assured of winning contact him via email drayoolasolutionhome@gmail. com or https://www.facebook.com/Dr-Ayoola-105640401516053/ text or call +14809032128
Natasha Thompson
My name is Natasha Thompson from the USA/Texas.. Am so overwhelmed with gratitude to let the world know how Dr Kachi, the great spell caster changed my life for good. It all started when I lost my job and I was down financially and emotionally because I couldn’t be able provide for my two kids and staying home all day Jobless it’s not easy until I was checking on the internet when I saw a series of testimonies hearing people winning the Powerball lottery, I didn’t believed, but being poor no job you have no option. I gave it a try and I contacted Dr Kachi who told me what i have to do before I can become a big lottery winner and I accepted. He made special prayers for me in his temple and gave me the required numbers to play the lottery game and when I used the numbers to play it, I won a massive $344.6 million Powerball jackpot. I was so happy and I choose to review my winning in any platform, I would love other people to seek help from Dr Kachi through Text and Call: +1 (209) 893-8075 or email drkachispellcast@gmail.com
Gerald Muswagon
Julianna Davis
i want to share to the whole world how Dr Kachi the Great of all the Spell Caster, that helped me reunite my marriage back, my Ex Husband broke up with me 3months ago, I have been trying to get him back ever since then, i was worried and so confused because i love him so much. I was really going too much depressed, he left me with my kids and just ignored me constantly. I have begged him for forgiveness through text messages for him to come back home and the kids crying and miss their dad but he wont reply, I wanted him back desperately. we were in a very good couple and yet he just ignores me and get on with his life just like that, so i was looking for help after reading a post of Dr Kachi on the internet when i saw a lady name SHARRON testified that Dr Kachi cast a Pure love spell to stop divorce. and i also met with other, it was about how he brought back her Ex lover in less than 24 hours at the end of her testimony she dropped his email, I contacted Dr Kachi via email and explained my problem to Dr Kachi and he told me what went wrong with my husband and how it happen, that he will restored my marriage back, and to my greatest surprise my Ex husband came back to me, and he apologized for his mistake, and for the pain he caused me and my children. Then from that day our marriage is now stronger than how it was before, Dr Kachi you’re a real spell caster, you can also get your Ex back and live with him happily: Contact Email drkachispellcast@gmail.com his Text Number and Call: +1 (209) 893-8075 Visit his Website: https://drkachispellcast.wixsite.com/my-site
Leave a comment
This site is protected by hCaptcha and the hCaptcha Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.