Boston’s Olympic bidding group to send sailing 60 miles south
Boston 2024 has said it will release new plans for its controversial Olympic bid by the end of the month. But it looks like change is already in the air: the group will make a “venue announcement’’ Thursday in New Bedford.
New Bedford will become the prospective site for sailing events at the 2024 Summer Games, which the southeastern Massachusetts city has clamored for since Boston was selected as the U.S. bid city. Organizers had previously planned to stage sailing events in Boston Harbor off of Castle Island, with Buzzards Bay (off of New Bedford) listed as a backup.
The first venue change indicates that what has been hailed as a “walkable Olympics’’ may indeed stretch further across Massachusetts, with this foray into the state’s Deep South. New Bedford is about 60 miles away from Boston.
Boston to New Bedford by foot.
In the previous version of the bid, most venues were clustered in Boston and Cambridge, though boxing and rowing events were planned for Lowell and soccer was at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough.
Gov. Charlie Baker said recently that he believed the next round of Boston 2024 plans would incorporate more of the state—something that may seem important to the group since it plans to hold a statewide referendum on the bid on Election Day in 2016.
Boston’s Olympic bid: The players
[bdc-gallery id=”107972″]
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com