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Turanchik brings Olympic lessons back from Sydney
By WAYNE WASHINGTON © St. Petersburg Times, published October 5, 2000 TAMPA -- Sydney's experience hosting the Olympic Games has convinced Ed Turanchik that Tampa can do it, too. But Turanchik, president and chief executive officer of Florida 2012, the local group trying to bring the Games to Tampa, said he and his staff have tinkered with their transportation plans after seeing how people were moved in Australia. Sydney expanded its existing rail service and made special use of its waterways, something Turanchik said Florida should also do if it is selected to host the Olympics. From the outset of Tampa's effort, transportation and the building of an Olympic stadium loomed as the biggest challenges. Those challenges, Turanchik said Wednesday, have been met. Florida 2012's transportation plan includes rail service between Orlando and Tampa, inter-city Amtrak service, buses and ferries from St. Petersburg to Tampa, Turanchik said. And malfunction junction will have to be made to function. "We have to upgrade the interstate above and beyond what the governor has proposed," Turanchik said. Gov. Jeb Bush has called for billions in road upgrades, including the widening of the Interstate 275 interchange with Interstate 4. Bush has also been a vocal supporter of Tampa's effort to host the Games, signing a bill that would have state taxpayers cover up to $175-million in losses if the Olympics were held in Florida and lost money. That type of support has been critical in cementing Tampa as a serious player in the competition to host the Olympics. Tampa is one of eight metropolitan regions submitting bids to the United States Olympic Committee to host the games. In 2002, the USOC will choose which region will be the American candidate in the international competition to host the Games. The International Olympic Committee will make the final selection in 2005. The eight American cities vying for the Games must submit bids to the USOC by Dec. 15. Tampa's bid will be 1,000 pages long and include details on everything from what the weather is like to where an Olympic stadium will be built. Turanchik said again on Wednesday that the stadium will be built in Tampa and that the University of South Florida's football team will use it after the Games. As he has in he past, Turanchik remained mum on where in Tampa the stadium will be built. But he has shared his plans with at least one person: Tampa Mayor Dick Greco, who isn't telling. Asked Wednesday if he knows where the stadium will be built, Greco said: "I could make a very good guess." Tampa's City Council must approve Florida 2012's bid before it is submitted. Several council members have already expressed strong support for the bid, but international factors far beyond the control of anyone in Tampa could hurt Florida 2012's chances. Television ratings for the Olympic Games in Sydney were the worst in 30 years, and there has been speculation the International Olympic Committee will look to give Toronto the Games in 2008. That would expand North American viewership -- and expand the rates NBC can charge advertisers. Broadcast rights cover a large chunk of the cost of hosting the Olympics. If Toronto hosts the Games in 2008, the IOC is not likely to bring them back to North America four years later. There is, though, another international scenario that hurts Toronto and, consequently, keeps Tampa's hopes alive. Dick Pound of Canada is considering a run for the presidency of the IOC. If he wins, the IOC would presumably be reluctant to then award a city in Pound's country the 2008 Olympics. Turanchik is keeping track of the international speculation, but it's not keeping him up at night. "We just keep on doing our jobs," he said. "I know this: In 1988, everyone said Athens was a lock for the Centennial Games. Obviously, Atlanta stuck to it and won."
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