LIMA, September 13, 2017 – Mayor of LosAngeles Eric Garcetti has praised the “radical revolution” of the IOC inawarding the 2024 and 2028 Olympic Games to Paris and LA in a single, no-losersswoop.

Garcetti however had harsh words forprevious host city leaders whose Games and overblown budgets have damaged theimage of the International Olympic Committee.

“Don’t pretend to do things that havenothing to do with the Olympics and put them on the Olympics budget,” Garcettisaid when asked on his message to any cities wishing to bid for Games in thefuture.

“There is no Olympics since after the Gamesin Sydney 2000 that have lost money on operations, it’s all infrastructure, andthat’s where overly-ambitious cities and mayors have been as responsible formaking the Games have a sometimes tougher image.

“Sometimes we get ambitious as cities, andthat’s great, cities need to have better airports and improved transportation,but it is including that in the Olympic budget that maybe unfair to theOlympics. The Olympics is the actual Games,” Garcetti concluded in sharp criticismfor what seems primarily aimed at the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, whose jointinfrastructural and sports-related budget was recorded at over $51 billion, thevast investment in which was largely seen as a vanity project of RussianPresident Vladimir Putin.

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It was the Games in Sochi that were seen asthe prime catalyst for the need of an urgent image change within the IOC and aclearer explanation on the prices of hosting an Olympic Games. Since Sochi, theRio 2016 Olympics which included a number of infrastructural investments incurreda $1.6 billion cost overrun, while the major worry ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Gamesis a budget which is already six times that of what was projected when the citywas elected in 2013.

The consequences of this was anoverwhelming hesitance for local governments and citizens to back bids overfears of astronomical budgets. It was also what spurred the IOC and Bach towant to lock down two solid candidates and tried and tested Olympic cities likeParis in Los Angeles in a joint allocation for the next two editions of theSummer Games.

“This way is unusual, we invented this way,and we are here as three winners together with Los Angeles and the IOC,” ParisMayor Anne Hidalgo said of the double allocation that IOC President Bach haddubbed as a golden opportunity to ensure stability and a ‘win-win-win’ for allsides.

Mayor Garcetti called the move a radical revolution.

“This is history. Usually you have two orthree cities crying in a corner and one glorious victor. We have had enough divisionsand enough of those going after dreams only to have them crushed.

“Now we have both our dreams coming true,”the LA Mayor added.