Mayor urges Wasserman to resign as head of 2028 L.A. Olympics - ESPN

MILAN — Pressure continues to mount for Casey Wasserman to leave as head of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics organizing team after the city's mayor urged him to step down because of his ties to Jeffrey Epstein's former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell.

L.A. Mayor Karen Bass told CNN late Monday that «my opinion is that he should step down» despite Wasserman getting support last week from the LA28 board to stay.

The issue has been a distraction for the International Olympic Committee this month since Wasserman's flirtatious emails from 2003 with Maxwell were published in a release of United States government files days before the Milan Cortina Winter Games opened.

The IOC had consistently deflected questions in Milan about Wasserman, saying it was a matter for the LA28 board, though its language shifted slightly Tuesday.

«I understand there are many conversations happening at this moment but I will not make any further comment,» IOC spokesman Mark Adams said Tuesday in Milan. «This is obviously a matter for the board of LA28 still at this stage.»

Mayor Bass told CNN that «I cannot fire [Wasserman]» during a studio interview, but she publicly stated that she thought he should leave.

Fallout at the entertainment and sports agency that Wasserman founded has resulted in lost clients since the emails release, including pop star Chappell Roan and soccer star Abby Wambach. Wasserman is now in the process of selling the agency.

Scrutiny on Wasserman has escalated despite the L.A. Olympics board last week backing him to stay based on a review, which he cooperated with, by outside legal counsel of his contacts with Epstein and Maxwell.

«I think that decision was unfortunate,» Bass told CNN. «I don't support the decision. I do think that