By ART CAMPOS
Thursday, February 08, 2007
A coalition of Nevada and California regional officials is making a serious effort to land the 2018 Winter Olympic Games for the Reno-Tahoe area.
The 24-member coalition of businessmen, politicians and other key players has been quietly working on the plan since 2002.
If successful, it would be the second time for the Reno-Tahoe area to have landed the Olympic Winter Games. The 1960 Games were held at Squaw Valley, Calif.
"It has great potential," Jim Vanden Heuvel, chief executive officer of the Reno-Tahoe Winter Games Coalition, said about the effort. "We're dedicated to being the next United States venue to host an Olympics."
Approval for the Games in Reno-Tahoe is needed from the U.S. Olympic Committee and then the International Olympic Committee, he said.
Vanden Heuvel estimated the region would need $1.6 billion to host the 2018 Games. An Olympic training facility, skating and skiing venues and improvements to existing facilities would be among the major expenses, he said.
Vanden Heuvel said about $1 billion could come from the sale of broadcast rights and international sponsorships. Possible federal grants for road and infrastructure improvements could be received even without the Olympics, he said.
"I think we're stronger in some areas than Salt Lake City was for the 2002 Winter Games," Vanden Heuvel said. "There are a lot of factors already in place."
Vanden Heuvel said the mountains and ski resorts in the region "can host everything needed in the Olympic program right now."
Reno-Tahoe also has more than 35,000 hotel rooms, he said. "It's more than double what Salt Lake City had," he said.
The region also has acceptable roads, the Reno-Tahoe International Airport and a significant population base within a four-hour drive, he said.
Among the necessities for the 2018 Games would be a confirmed financing plan for the ski jumps, bobsled and luge runs, an indoor venue for long-track speed skating, an arena for figure skating and a public transit system, Vanden Heuvel said.
On Tuesday, the Placer County, Calif., Board of Supervisors was asked for its support of the Winter Games plan. The five members endorsed it enthusiastically.
Rich Colwell, Placer County's chief assistant to the county executive officer, said Reno-Tahoe would be a strong candidate for the 2018 Games.
"It had great success in 1960, and other venues do not have Lake Tahoe as the centerpiece," he said. "It's one of the most beautiful sites in the world. And Reno-Tahoe already has tremendous tourism."
Vanden Heuvel said 220,000 people visited Salt Lake City during the 2002 Games and spent an estimated $350 million.
Since those Olympics, tourism in Salt Lake City has increased by an average of 14 percent annually, Vanden Heuvel said, adding that he believes Reno-Tahoe would enjoy similar success if it hosted the 2018 Olympics.
"There is still a legacy developed around Squaw Valley, and it's been more than 45 years since it hosted the Olympics," he said. "It's a big part of the history."
Vanden Heuvel said the Olympic quest has support from various jurisdictions in and around the Tahoe basin and from the Nevada Commission on Sports.
It will soon seek support from the state of California and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, he said.
(The Sacramento Bee's Art Campos can be reached at acampos(at)sacbee.com.)
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