February 21, 2013

Minneapolis
City of Lakes

Office of the Mayor

R. T. Rybak Mayor 350 South Fifth Street - Room 331 Minneapolis, MN 55415-1393 Office Fax TTY 612 612 612 673-2100 673-2305 673-3187

Mr. Scott A. Blackmun Chief Executive Officer United States Olympic Committee One Olympic Plaza Colorado Springs CO 80809 Dear Mr. Blackmun: Thank you for your letter of February 19 about the interest that we have expressed in Minneapolis in becoming the U.S. candidate city to host the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Summer Games. I am firmly convinced that the city of Minneapolis, the MinneapolisSaint Paul metropolitan region and the state of Minnesota have the people, the talent, the community spirit and the overall destination appeal to host a successful Olympic and Paralympic Games. Moreover, we are making more than $1 billion in investments in our hospitality, sports and entertainment infrastructure that, when added to our extraordinary natural assets, will make us competitive with any city in the nation and the world. At the same time, bidding on the Olympic Games entails an extraordinary commitment of time and resources. Upon review of your letter, and after consultation with local partners, we have determined that it makes more sense for Minneapolis to pursue large-scale, national-caliber events like the Super Bowl, the Democratic National Convention and others than to proceed with an Olympic bid at this time. We have formed an organization called the Meet Minneapolis Local Organizing Committee (MMLOC) that is charged with recruiting, hosting and fundraising for major events. This group will be reaching out to offer Minneapolis as a site for Olympic training and exhibition events that are a good fit for us and with our year-round natural assets and world-class sports infrastructure, we believe that there are many. We look forward to working with you in this endeavor. Thank you again for thinking of Minneapolis. Minneapolis fully supports the Olympic movement, and with the rest of the country, we are ready to support the next U.S. city that will proudly host the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Sincerely,

Mayor R.T. Rybak City of Minneapolis

www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us
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