What if Detroit had Hosted the ’64 Summer Olympics? Pure Michigan Chief Skeptical of Benefits

LANSING, MI (WHTC-AM/FM) – The adage “beware of what you wish for, for you just might get it” seems to be apropos for cities who host the Olympics.

The summer games formally kicked off on Friday (July 23, 2021) in Tokyo behind “closed doors,” as COVID 19 health concerns have prohibited any spectators at any of the venues. Those concerns had postponed the games for about a year, and there are those in the Japanese capital who want the Olympics to be canceled altogether because of it.

The summer games were last in Tokyo in 1964, as the International Olympic Committee selected that site ahead of Detroit, which finished a distant second in the balloting. Dave Lorenz of Pure Michigan doesn’t want to think of “what if” had the Motor City hosted those games 57 years ago.

“The Olympics is a different game altogether,” he said on “WHTC Morning News” during his weekly appearance on Friday. “It’s so massively big, so unless you build out the infrastructure so that it suits the needs for that massive build up for that one event, and then can be utilized by the community in a efficient way, it can be a real challenge.”

The next three summer Olympic games are set for Paris, Los Angeles and Melbourne.