We intend to offer Olympians the experience of a lifetime by offering the most compact venue plan of any modern Games. The athletes will enjoy unprecedented convenience - 88% will live within 15 minutes of their world-class competition venues, and all will live in a new Olympic Village on the lakefront. After they are done competing, the athletes can enjoy Chicago’s parks, festivals, culture and nightlife, all literally within walking distance.

The Olympic Stadium will be located in historic Washington Park, not far from where the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition was held. This one-of-a-kind venue will be carefully nestled into the park’s green space and comfortably seat 80,000 people for Olympic events. After the Games, it will become a 5,000+ person multi-purpose complex hosting myriad sporting and cultural activities.

In sum, there will be four centrally located clusters woven into Chicago’s urban plan encompassing 27 competition venues.

See exclusive images of the specific venues and where they will be located.

World Sport Chicago was launched on January 10, 2007. This organization will work to enhance the image, awareness and participation in Olympic and amateur sports across Chicago with the goal of giving athletes the opportunity to see and experience sport across all levels. Michael Conley, former Olympic and world champion in the triple jump, has been named the executive director of the organization. Wrestling world champion and Olympic Medalist Bill Scherr will serve as chairman of the board.

The first World Sport Chicago event is the Chicago Cup on February 6th, a wrestling match between U.S., Russia and China. This is a significant opportunity to demonstrate Chicago’s support for international amateur sport, please join us! Admission is free, your only expense is parking.

For more information about the organization and the event, go to worldsportchicago.org.

Chicago Cup
February 6, 2007
5:00pm-6:30pm demonstrations

McGraw-Hall/ Welsh Ryan Arena
Northwestern University
2705 Ashland Avenue
Evanston, Illinois

The Chicago 2016 team submitted its Bid Proposal to the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) on Monday, January 22. The nearly 500-page document (not including appendices) describes, in entirety, Chicago’s plans for the games. Its completion is a huge milestone for the team and more progress on the path to the USOC decision between Los Angeles and Chicago. The next step is a visit by USOC members in March and, ultimately, the decision on April 14.

If you’ve traveled internationally lately, you probably have. Chicago 2016 recently unveiled a series of Olympic displays at O’Hare International Airport to ensure that its thousands of domestic and international travelers are aware of the city’s bold vision to host the 2016 Olympic Games. The non-traditional displays include life-size renditions of a gymnast on a balance beam (walkway between Terminal 1 and 2), a pole-vaulter stretching to new heights, and a diver ready to splash into a 20’ by 25’ pool placed on the floor (International Terminal).

Lots more to come. Thanks for being part of what makes Chicago an ideal place to host the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games!! Come back and visit us soon and often – www.chicago2016.org.