April a cruel month for IOC visit to Chicago?
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When Chicago shows off its 2016 Summer Olympic plans to the International Olympic Committee’s evaluation commission, the visitors probably will get a taste of what Chicagoans have to endure every year.
April is the cruelest month.
Chicago bid officials found out Tuesday at an Asian Olympic committee meeting in Bali, where they are pitching the city’s candidature, that the IOC’s visit will be next April 2-8.
At that time of year, the average high temperature in Chicago is between 54 and 58, the average low from 37 to 39.
And April is historically the city’s rainiest month.
While the 10-member commission is supposed to see past weather (it visited the 2012 Summer Games finalists in the winter), Chicago needs to show itself off to a group less familiar with the city’s charms than with those of the other three finalists.
The evaluation commission is to visit Tokyo April 14-20; Rio de Janeiro April 27–May 3; and Madrid, May 4-9.
Only Rio is summery at that time of year -- late autumn in Brazil.
The evaluation commission prepares a technical report to be issued a month before the Oct. 2, 2009 vote to pick the 2016 host. The report does not give an overall ranking of the cities.
Chicago’s bid committee not only will be explaining details of its bid plans but will have at least one chance to wine and dine the commission members during a visit three days longer than in the 2012 campaign.
New York trotted out Whoopi Goldberg, Meryl Streep, Henry Kissinger, Wynton Marsalis and Christo for its bash, then wound up next-to-last in an IOC vote won by London.
-- Philip Hersh
