“Paris is giving us lots of inspiring ideas for the next Games in Los Angeles,” enthuses Mayor Karen Bass

In four years, in 2028, Los Angeles will host the Olympic Games. The mayor of the American city is visiting Paris to find inspiration. She is already anticipating the major challenges of organizing the next Olympic Games, including the problem of public transportation.

“Paris gives us lots of inspiring ideas for the next Games in Los Angeles”enthuses Karen Bass. The mayor of Los Angeles, California, which will host the next Summer Olympics, is in Saint-Ouen, Seine-Saint-Denis, on Thursday, August 8, to develop partnerships between the two cities. The Democrat is taking advantage of the Paris Games until the closing ceremony to take notes and draw inspiration for 2028, she confided to franceinfo in an interview.

franceinfo: What do you think of these Games so far?

Karen Bass: I find these Games incredible! This is the second time I come, I was there for the opening ceremony, I was able to attend some events and last night I had the chance to see the emulation that the Games provoke in Paris, whether you are in the stands or outside, everyone participates.

Is there anything that particularly inspires you?

The way the city has of bringing the Games to life everywhere, the fact that public transportation was heavily used and that it works. But also, the opening ceremony! The way French history was celebrated, revealed to the whole world, with the cooperation of the athletes. And then there are incredible elected officials, like the mayor of Saint-Ouen, who show that beyond Paris, there is room for everyone in these Games. The example of Saint-Ouen is very inspiring for me on how the cities around Los Angeles can be involved.

“It doesn’t just happen on the test sites!”

Karen Bass, Mayor of Los Angeles

franceinfo

In Saint-Ouen, there is a part of the Olympic village for example. We will not build one and it is a shame because it would have made more housing. Our athletes will be housed at the University of California, UCLA.

What will be the main challenges during the Los Angeles games?

We are all concerned. But the priority will be traffic management. Our Games will be car-free, which means you won’t be able to drive to the venues. Everything will be done by public transport. We will need 3,000 more buses! We will ask for help from the surrounding cities but also from the states. Fortunately, we are fortunate to have an administration in Washington, with President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, soon to be president I hope, who will support us and make these Games a success.

We also need to house all the homeless people. We have been working on this for a long time and we need to continue. We can’t hide the problem from Los Angeles. I hope the Games will be a success for that too.

It’s going to be hard to do better than Paris, right?

Absolutely! But I think Paris gives us a lot of ideas for what we can do in Los Angeles.