Florida wants to lure Olympics away from Tokyo
Florida’s Chief Financial Officer has just issued a proposal to the International Olympic Committee, asking that they relocate the Tokyo Olympic Games to the Sunshine State.
State CFO Jimmy Patronis wrote to the IOC saying Florida can handle a last minute change of venue, with hopes fading that Japan will be able to host the Games this year.
It had already been postponed from last year.
Public support in Japan to hosting the Games this year is dwindling due to the governments disjointed handling of the pandemic.
Patronis says there’s still time to send a site selection team to Florida to meet state and local officials.
He says it can handle such a massive global event as it has been holding large sports events during the pandemic.
Patronis’ pitch for the Games said: "As a tourism state, Florida welcomed 131 million tourists in 2019. Our state has ample hotel capacity and well-maintained transportation networks to accommodate the kind of infrastructure required for a major undertaking of this sort."
However in the letter Patronis didn’t mention Florida’s Covid case count is about five times higher than the whole of Japan, and Florida only has a faction of Japan’s total population.
More than 1.6 million people in Florida have tested positive for Covid since the pandemic began.
Patronis rather optimistically claimed ‘Florida can successfully deliver an Olympic event to the world for little-to-no cost.’
Dana Young, President and CEO of VISIT FLORIDA told TravelMole: "We have hosted large events since the beginning of the pandemic and will soon host the Super Bowl in Tampa, so we have the knowledge and experience needed to host this or any other event, while adhering to CDC guidelines to keep participants and spectators safe."
Written by Ray Montgomery, US Editor
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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