News
NYC Battles for 2012 Olympics
Some New Yorkers Express Concern Over Idea of Summer Olympics in City
By Josie Swindler
Spectator Staff Writer
April 08, 2004
Few students have a five-year plan, much less one for eight years from now.
But students who work for NYC2012, a non-profit organization trying to bring the Summer Olympic Games to New York City for the first time, are different. The few interns there now work with the full-time staff calling former Olympians, preparing press releases, and contributing to the Olympic spirit.
And, with more than 1200 intern applicants for the summer, NYC2012 internship director Sara Clough said this is a "huge, huge project" that offers students long-term career development. About 16 interns will be hired for the intense summer campaign, and from the estimated dozens of Columbia students that applied, some have already been denied the internship or invited for an interview this week.
NYC2012 really got serious in 2002, when New York City beat out San Francisco for a chance to compete for the 2012 summer Olympics against the international cities Havana, Istanbul, Leipzig, London, Madrid, Moscow, Paris, and Rio de Janeiro. Since then the process has escalated, culminating this month as the five finalist designs for the possible Olympic Village, where the 10,000 competing athletes would live, were on display in Grand Central Station, and Nasdaq's giant screens in Times Square displayed the winning design for New York's bid for the Olympics. The image is of a figure with both arms raised; the right arm is that of a champion athlete, while the left arm belongs to the Statue of Liberty holding a torch.
The Olympic Torch will be carried through all 9 candidate cities this June, and will be carried briefly by University President Lee Bollinger, who is an NYC2012 board member. He is joined on the board by gold-medal swimmer and Columbia alum Christina Teuscher, CC '00, designer Kate Spade, comedian Jerry Seinfeld, artist Chuck Close, talk show host Conan O'Brien, singer Diana Ross, actor Billy Crystal, designer Kenneth Cole, several former Olympic athletes, and some United States Olympic Committee members.
Columbia's role in the process is murky. Last year Columbia hosted the Fencing World Cup, which will take place at Columbia again this summer, and this Friday night the Danish National Performance Squad, made up of top gymnasts, will perform in the Dodge Physical Fitness Center. Bollinger's position on the board may not mean anything, or it may mean benefits for the University if New York City wins its Olympic Bid, which will be announced July 6, 2005. The construction that would begin immediately could include renovations to Baker Field, including the stadium and fieldhouse, to make it an Olympic men's and women's field hockey venue. Previous estimates say the $23 million renovations would be paid for entirely by NYC2012, which promises not to use any tax dollars.
Despite the claim that the Olympics would not cost taxpayers a cent, many New Yorkers are against the idea. Although Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Governor George Pataki, and Senators Charles Schumer and Hilary Clinton support the Olympic bid, some New Yorkers, including many state officials and several community boards, consider 17 days of upwards of half a million more people in the city, the extension of the number 7 line, and a stadium on the West Side of Manhattan next to the Javits Center--although the Jets may get the stadium regardless--too big an investment for NYC2012's projected $11 billion return in revenue. http://www.columbiaspectator.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2004/04/08/4074f3d1f3784
jake · 2004-04-08
News NYC Battles for 2012 Olympics Some New Yorkers Express Concern Over Idea of Summer Olympics in City By Josie Swindler Spectator Staff Writer April 08, 2004 Few students have a five-year plan, much less one for eight years from now. But students who work for NYC2012, a non-profit organization trying to bring the Summer Olympic Games to New York City for the first time, are different. The few interns there now work with the full-time staff calling former Olympians, preparing press releases, and contributing to the Olympic spirit. And, with more than 1200 intern applicants for the summer, NYC2012 internship director Sara Clough said this is a "huge, huge project" that offers students long-term career development. About 16 interns will be hired for the intense summer campaign, and from the estimated dozens of Columbia students that applied, some have already been denied the internship or invited for an interview this week. NYC2012 really got serious in 2002, when New York City beat out San Francisco for a chance to compete for the 2012 summer Olympics against the international cities Havana, Istanbul, Leipzig, London, Madrid, Moscow, Paris, and Rio de Janeiro. Since then the process has escalated, culminating this month as the five finalist designs for the possible Olympic Village, where the 10,000 competing athletes would live, were on display in Grand Central Station, and Nasdaq's giant screens in Times Square displayed the winning design for New York's bid for the Olympics. The image is of a figure with both arms raised; the right arm is that of a champion athlete, while the left arm belongs to the Statue of Liberty holding a torch. The Olympic Torch will be carried through all 9 candidate cities this June, and will be carried briefly by University President Lee Bollinger, who is an NYC2012 board member. He is joined on the board by gold-medal swimmer and Columbia alum Christina Teuscher, CC '00, designer Kate Spade, comedian Jerry Seinfeld, artist Chuck Close, talk show host Conan O'Brien, singer Diana Ross, actor Billy Crystal, designer Kenneth Cole, several former Olympic athletes, and some United States Olympic Committee members. Columbia's role in the process is murky. Last year Columbia hosted the Fencing World Cup, which will take place at Columbia again this summer, and this Friday night the Danish National Performance Squad, made up of top gymnasts, will perform in the Dodge Physical Fitness Center. Bollinger's position on the board may not mean anything, or it may mean benefits for the University if New York City wins its Olympic Bid, which will be announced July 6, 2005. The construction that would begin immediately could include renovations to Baker Field, including the stadium and fieldhouse, to make it an Olympic men's and women's field hockey venue. Previous estimates say the $23 million renovations would be paid for entirely by NYC2012, which promises not to use any tax dollars. Despite the claim that the Olympics would not cost taxpayers a cent, many New Yorkers are against the idea. Although Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Governor George Pataki, and Senators Charles Schumer and Hilary Clinton support the Olympic bid, some New Yorkers, including many state officials and several community boards, consider 17 days of upwards of half a million more people in the city, the extension of the number 7 line, and a stadium on the West Side of Manhattan next to the Javits Center--although the Jets may get the stadium regardless--too big an investment for NYC2012's projected $11 billion return in revenue.Columbia Spectator Article
http://www.columbiaspectator.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2004/04/08/4074f3d1f3784