Olympics Chicago

Both Barack Obama and John McCain say they'd like to see the 2016 Olympics in Chicago. But President Obama would likely do more to support the bid than President McCain, and not just because Obama lives in Chicago.

McCain has at times been a thorn in the side of the Olympic movement, and with good reason -- he was one of the most vocal opponents of corruption and wasteful spending of taxpayer dollars surrounding the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City. McCain's spokesman said that while McCain supports having the Olympics in Chicago, he also wants to make sure it isn't financed by federal taxpayers.

It also appears that many influential members of the Influential Olympic Committee oppose President Bush's foreign policies and would be more welcoming to bringing the Games back to the United States if a Democrat were in the White House. That means that when the 2016 Games are awarded on June 18, 2009, they're more likely to be awarded to Chicago if Obama is president.

Yesterday we noted that Chicago, Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro and Madrid were looking like the four favorites to become the finalists to host the 2016 Olympics, and today those four cities were named the finalists.

But while Chicago is currently looking like the favorite, a rift between the International Olympic Committee and the U.S. Olympic Committee could derail the Windy City's chances. The USOC gets a share of Olympic revenue that many IOC members think is unfair, and those members could punish the USOC by withholding the Olympics from Chicago:

Hein Verbruggen, an I.O.C. member from the Netherlands, called the deal "immoral" and said he was "angry with these people," meaning the U.S.O.C., for their reluctance to renegotiate. "I simply do not understand how you can justify that the rest of the world has to pay for the training of American athletes," he said. "Are we out of our minds?"

If the USOC agrees to re-slice the Olympic revenue pie, Chicago will become an overwhelming favorite. If not, it'll be a close race. The host city will be chosen in October of 2009.

The International Olympic Committee will announce the short list of candidates to host the 2016 Summer Olympics Wednesday morning, and it appears that Chicago is the city best prepared to move on.

The Bid Index at GamesBids.com says that Chicago is the early favorite, with a very slight lead over Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro and Madrid. Doha, Qatar is a borderline candidate, while Prague and Baku appear likely to be eliminated Wednesday.

Chicago's strength as a host city include its excellent athletic facilities, the support of high-profile Chicagoans including Barack Obama and Mayor Richard Daley, and the fact that sponsors like having the Games in the United States.

The biggest obstacle standing in the way of Chicago hosting the Games is that the U.S. government does not financially support host cities the way countries like Qatar and Brazil are more than happy to do. But for now, Chicago appears to be the favorite.

There's a perception in Chicago that it is the favorite to host the 2016 Summer Olympics, and some people even seem to think awarding the Games to the Windy City is a mere formality.

But U.S. Olympic Committee chairman Peter Ueberroth says that couldn't be further from the truth. Ueberroth says Chicago is "in third or fourth place," definitely behind Madrid and Tokyo and probably behind Rio de Janeiro, too.

Ueberroth says that means it's time for Chicago officials to develop relationships with the 119 voting members of the International Olympic Committee: "We all have to remember to keep focused on what we're in this for," Ueberroth said. "We're in this to get 60 votes."

And while Ueberroth would never be so vulgar as to come right out and say this, let's be honest: This is really about bribery. Oh, sure, there was a "scandal" back in the 1990s when people were "shocked" that Salt Lake City officials gave "bribes" to ensure that they'd get to host the Winter Games, and there were "reforms" to ensure that it would never happen "again."

But most if not all of the IOC members will make official visits to Chicago at some point between now and the vote in 2009, and there's a fine line between bribery and hospitality. If I know my city, a choice between crossing that line and not getting the Olympics is no choice at all.

AOL Sports is compiling a list of the worst uniforms ever, and, because they're our friends and the subject matter lends itself to hilarity, we thought we'd join in the fun. So here's our look at the worst logos in Olympic history.

The official logo for the 2012 London Olympics was unveiled yesterday, and British artists think it's hideous. In MJD's Debriefing he wrote, "I'm not saying I don't like it ... I just don't completely understand what it's supposed to make me feel." And that's just about the most positive thing anyone has had to say.

But the 2012 London Olympic logo isn't even close to the worst symbol in Olympic history. Here are the five worst logos or mascots in the history of the Olympics:

1. 1960 Rome: Reading that Romulus and Remus were nursed by a wolf is interesting. Seeing it is disgusting.

2. 1988 Seoul: Staring intently at that swirl can cause vertigo.

3. Whatizit, 1996 Atlanta: A weird blue creature sure to scare small children.

4. Waldi the Dachsund, 1972 Munich: The ugliest dog I've ever seen.

5. Tokyo, 1964: Would it have killed them to try to be a little creative?

I'm a Chicagoan, and if our fair city wins the 2016 Olympics, I nominate Miss Gossip to design the logo.

(Photo credit: Getty Images)

As Chicago prepares its bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics, those of us who live in the Windy City have heard a lot about how much the Olympic Games would boost the city's economy.

But a report to the London government on the likely impact of the 2012 Games indicates that there is no truth to the idea that the Olympics help the economy:

The report found that 2012 may struggle to make any serious difference to unemployment in London. 'Long-term unemployed and workless communities were largely unaffected by the staging of the Games in each of the [last four host] cities. Much of the employment was temporary, and there was also little evidence that volunteer skills transferred to the post-Games economy,' says the report co-authored by Dr Iain MacRury. 'Greece actually lost 70,000 jobs in the three months following the [2004] Games, mostly in the construction industry.'

The Olympics are a great spectacle, and because of civic pride, most residents enjoy having their city host the Olympics. But when city leaders tell us the Olympics are sure to provide a boom to our economy, they're insulting our intelligence.

The U.S. Olympic Committee announced today that Chicago will apply to host the 2016 Summer Olympics, picking the Windy City over Los Angeles as the American city that will try to persuade the International Olympic Committee to bring the Olympic Games back to the United States.

Bob Ctvrtlik of the U.S. Olympic Committee said either Chicago or Los Angeles was equipped to be "the best-prepared bid city in the history of the United States." Chicago has never hosted the Olympics.

Chicago will compete against cities likely to include Madrid, Prague, Rome, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo. That competition will take two and a half years: The International Olympic Committee will announce the host of the 2016 Olympics in October 2009.

Could we have Olympic baseball at Wrigley Field? Opening ceremonies at Soldier Field? We'll find out in two and a half years.

UPDATE: Following up on the comment left by Jeff, the International Olympic Committee has voted to eliminate baseball and softball as Olympic sports, starting in 2012. However, that was in large part because 2012 host London doesn't have a good venue. I'm betting that if Chicago were the host in 2016, they'd reinstate both sports.