Second City winds up 4th in Olympics bid
By DEANNA BELLANDI,
AP
posted: 1 HOUR 9 MINUTES AGO
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CHICAGO -Thousands of people stood in bewildered silence in downtown Chicago on Friday after the International Olympic Committee eliminated the city from the race for the 2016 Summer Olympics in the first round of voting.
The stunning vote in Copenhagen was carried on huge television screens set up in the Daley Center to host what many believed would be a celebration. The choice of Chicago as the host city had seemed so likely to many still basking in the glow of hometown Sen. Barack Obama's election as president.
Instead, Chicago was bounced in the first round, bringing an audible gasp from the crowd. The elimination came so quickly — more than an hour before the final announcement — that people were still excitedly talking among themselves when IOC President Jacques Rogge announced: "The city of Chicago, having obtained the least number of votes, will not participate in the next round."
