One of the reforms proposed by the International Olympic Committee could open the door to several events during the 2024 Summer Games being held in Vatican City, an idea endorsed by Pope Francis,
Yahoo Sports reports.
On Monday, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi made the official announcement that Rome would submit a bid to host the 2024 Games, a move which a top cardinal confirms was endorsed by Pope Francis. The Pontiff, according to the report, is scheduled to meet later this week with members of the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI).
One of the ideas floating around since Renzi confirmed Rome's bid was holding archery events in the Vatican's gardens or in the gardens of the Pope's summer residence at Castelgandolfo, which lies to the southeast of Rome.
"That seems to me to be an excellent idea," Portuguese cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins was quoted as telling the Quotidiano Nazionale daily's Monday edition, according to the Italian news site
The Local.
"It has never been done but the Church has always encouraged sport as a vehicle for healthy values," he said.
And hosting the event at an existing location would be cost-effective, which is at the forefront of Renzi's mind as a proposal is developed.
"The Italian government, together with CONI, is ready to do its part for a project that isn’t based on great infrastructures or big dreams but rather great people, " Renzi said in making the announcement. "We will be at the vanguard for all the spending controls."
Italy, which withdrew its bid for the 2020 Games because of financial concerns, joins Germany as the only other country to formally announce a bid. The two German cities that could serve as host are Berlin and Hamburg.
Many nations have hesitated to submit a proposal to host the Olympics out of concern about the financial commitments they would need to make.
With that in mind, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) unveiled last week a range of reforms designed to make the bidding process more competitive, reports
Fox Sports.
Under the proposals, the IOC would allow "the organization of entire sports and disciplines outside the host city or, in exceptional cases, outside the host country notably for reasons of geography and sustainability."
That proposal could allow Vatican City to serve as host for archery or other events.
"More must be done to alleviate concerns regarding the costs and impacts of hosting the Olympic Games," the IOC document said, according to Fox Sports. "The compactness of the bid is always important," said John Coates, the committee’s vice president said, reports
The Associated Press.
"But the compactness of the Games has to be weighed up with the cost benefit of being able to use existing venues rather than build new venues," Coates said.
The new bid process will go into effect for the race for the 2024 Summer Olympics.
The United States, which hasn't hosted the Summer Games since 1996 in Atlanta, is considering several cities to put forward as hosts, including Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington.
© 2023 Newsmax. All rights reserved.