Chicago, IL

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, three international boxers, in Chicago this week for the AIBA boxing championships, have disappeared.

Two boxers from Uganda, Phillip Adyaku and Sharif Bogere, as well as an Armenian boxer named Vachagan Avagyan have left their respective teams. All of them apparently left their hotel with their luggage, which indicates a planned move on their part to separate from their teams.

The men are not technically “missing persons” because the Chicago police do not believe that foul play is involved. They are considered to be on a “non-criminal, unauthorized absence.” The police believe that they are “exploring the U.S.”

The parents of the Armenian boxer were contacted by officials and were not upset by the situation, which, presumably means that he had made them aware of his plans before coming to the United States.

The athletes have 90-day visas to be in the United Stats for the tournament. If they remain in the United States past the time of the visa, they will have to apply for special permission to stay in the country, such as asylum. Being unaware of the circumstances of these men’s lives in their respective countries, I cannot say for sure if they are attempting to leave their countries due to problems in their home nation.

This is the first somewhat negative event to plague the tournament, which had been going well thus far. Whether this will have any effect on Chicago’s Olympic bid is uncertain. Certainly it is not the fault of the city if certain athletes decide that they were rather stay in the United States that remain a part of their team.

Chicago, AIBA, Phillip Adyaku, Sharif Bogere, Vachagan Avagyan, boxing

Despite U.S. Olympic Committee chairman Peter Ueberroth’s previous comments that Chicago is “lagging behind” the other cities in contention for the 2016 summer game Olympic bid, apparently the city is doing okay so far. Gerhard Heiberg of Norway, an International Olympic Committee executive board member said that Chicago is among three other cities as the front runners. The other main cities in contention are Madrid, Tokyo and Rio de Janeiro.

All of this talk has come as a result of the IBA World Boxing Championship getting underway in Chicago. I posted previously that I did not believe that this event, although an event of international stature, would really give the Olympic committee an accurate gauge of what the city could do with the Olympics. I now realize that the event will not show definitively that the city can handle the Olympics, but it may be able to show that it cannot.

If the city fails at its task of hosting this minor (in comparison to the Olympics) event, then it will surely drop from contention. If the anything goes wrong with the lodging or transportation for the boxers, or if something happens with the venue, then it could come back to haunt the city in their bid.

My main concern about Chicago hosting the event is cost, transportation, and whether they will be able to do all that they have claimed in terms of building venues. The city has a history of going over budget and past the due date on projects before and I do not see how this would be any different. Also, the perennial problem that is the CTA could make or break the city’s bid. I would think that the state of Illinois would be working to get funding for the CTA so that Chicago can show the committee that they are serious about public transportation reform.

In what many are calling a test to see how Chicago can handle an international event in their pursuit for an Olympic bid, Chicago will be hosting the AIBA World Boxing Championship starting next week.

The event, which runs from October 23rd through November 3rd, will take place at the University of Illinois-Chicago (UIC) pavilion. The championship is a qualifier for the the 2008 summer Olympics in Beijing, China.

An astounding 700 boxers from 120 countries are expected to compete in the eleven day event, including such notable athletes as Rau’shee Warren, Gary Russell, Jr., gold medalists Manus Boomjumnong of Thailand and Alexey Tishchenko of Russia.

In preparation for the event, the city will be hosting an Opening Ceremony Athlete Procession on Monday, October 22nd, beginning at the Palmer House Hilton, traveling north on State Street and ending at the Chicago Theatre. The event kicks off at 4:00 p.m. and is expected to last an hour.

While I am sure that Mayor Daley will be quick to praise the city if the event goes off well, I am not sure if I believe that it will really be a “test-run” to see if Chicago can handle the Olympics. This is only one sport and only one venue. Additionally, although there are a lot of boxing fans, I cannot imagine that the city is going to be invaded by hordes of tourists to see the event the way it would with the Olympic games. Even the amount of media for an event like this is going to be on a small-scale compared to the Olympics.

If you want to check out the event, tickets appear to rather affordable, starting at $10 for the early rounds and as cheap as $25 for the finals. For more information, visit the official site here.

Chicago, AIBA, World Boxing Championship, Olympics, boxing

Yesterday the city of Chicago unveiled its new logo for its bid to host the 2016 summer Olympic games. They were forced to change the previous logo, which included a flame designed to look like the city skyline, because it looked too much like the Olympic torch. Applicant cities are not permitted to use the Olympic logo until they are selected as the host city.

The new logo, called “the star” reflects “the unique design of the four stars on the Chicago flag” and “represents the importance of the Games to the city’s future and literally symbolizes the athletes at the center of the Games.”

For more information on the meaning by the logo or how you can help the city of Chicago secure the Olympic games, visit Chicago 2016.

Chicago, Chicago 2016, Olympics, Olympic logo

The city of Chicago is being forced by the International Olympic Committee to change its official bid logo because it presently looks too much like the Olympic torch. Apparently the IOC prohibits the use of any Olympic imagery in logos by cities attempting to receive an Olympic bid.

This is disappointing because I liked the clever way in which the flame looked like the Chicago skyline. Hopefully they will come up with something just as good, but IOC-legal. Do any of our readers have any suggestions for new ideas? For all of your Chicago Olympic bid information, head over to Chicago 2016.

Chicago, Olympics, 2016

As part of its campaign to host the 2016 summer Olympics, the city of Chicago created this video called “Stir the Soul.” It is not just a convincing look at why Chicago should host the Olympics, but also a great advertisement for why people should visit the city.

Video below courtesy of you tube.

Chicago, 2016 Olympics, Olympics, summer Olympics, athletics