Deadly and Devastating Wildfires Spare Los Angeles Olympic Venues
Deadly and Devastating Wildfires Spare Los Angeles Olympic Venues
The lead-up to the city hosting the 2028 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, along with World Cup matches in 2026 and a Super Bowl in 2027, will coincide with a massive rebuilding of housing and infrastructure.
The devastation caused by the deadly wildfires that ravaged parts of Los Angeles has left a lasting impact on the region’s landscape and psyche.
The lead-up to the city hosting the 2028 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, along with World Cup matches in 2026 and a Super Bowl in 2027, will coincide with a massive rebuilding of housing and infrastructure. This feels ironically cruel after Los Angeles organizers marketed the Games as a "no-build" event. None of the Olympic venues have been damaged by the still-burning fires that tore through Pacific Palisades on the city’s westside and Altadena, an unincorporated community above Pasadena in the San Gabriel Mountains foothills.
The Palisades fire came close to the Riviera Country Club, which will host Olympic golf, and was within the evacuation zone. UCLA, which will house athletes, was just outside the zone. “While our focus remains on healing and rebuilding, there is no reason to believe the fires will adversely impact or delay preparations for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, which are already well underway,” Paul Kerkorian, executive director of the city’s new office of major events, said in a statement.
The NFL, NBA, and college basketball relocated or postponed games after the fires began on January 7.
Neither of the two major fires has been contained, and thousands remain evacuated.
“We are in full solidarity with the citizens of Los Angeles and deeply admire the tireless work of the firefighters and security forces,” the International Olympic Committee said in a statement. “Currently, the full focus must be on combating the fires and protecting people and property.”
Los Angeles was awarded the 2028 Olympics for a third time in 2017, with the IOC praising the organizers’ bid for using existing and temporary venues rather than building new stadiums and sports facilities for the Games, as well as its commitment to sustainability and fiscal responsibility.
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