Hollywood factor will help LA deliver best Games ever, says boss

PARIS : Los Angeles cannot compete with the iconic landmarks of the Paris Olympics but LA28 Games organisers are confident the Hollywood factor and the American city's identity will help them raise the bar when they host the event in four years' time.

The Paris Games were a hit with fans, athletes, sponsors and broadcasters and LA28 CEO Reynold Hoover praised French organisers for an "incredible Games".

Hoover, a former U.S. Army lieutenant general who came out of retirement to take charge of the next summer Games, admitted there were areas where the West Coast city could not compete with Paris, but said they had plenty to offer nonetheless.

"Paris is an amazing venue. Every single one of the venues here in Paris is iconic and you cannot compete against playing beach volleyball or blind football in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower," he told Reuters in an interview on Friday.

"But every city has a personality, every city has something different to offer the Olympics and we think that (in) LA we have our own iconic sporting venues; we've got the Coliseum we've got the Rose Bowl, we've got amazing world class athletic competition venues.

"Also in LA we have diversity, we've got culture we've got sport we've got entertainment we've got storytelling and that's what you're going to see when you come to LA, it is that amazing ability to bring everybody together and unite the world around sport."

With venues close to each other, easy transportation and competitions in or near stunning monuments in the heart of the city, Paris 2024 set a high bar.

ROCKET MAN

Hoover, however, believes LA can do better. After all, they have got Hollywood, which has already played a part in the 1932 and 1984 Olympics.

"Hollywood is magic. When you think of LA