Trump supports 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, bid leaders say

CARSON, Calif. — Now it’s official: President Trump didn’t inadvertently sink Los Angeles’ bid for the Olympics.

The announcement on Monday that the International Olympic Committee and Los Angeles have reached an agreement for the city to host the 2028 Summer Games takes Trump off the hot seat as a potential bid killer.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti acknowledged the speculation about Trump’s potential impact, and much of it was tied to Trump’s travel ban now in effect for six predominantly Muslim countries.

But the White House has made assurances that athletes from all countries will be welcome at the 2028 Games, according to Garcetti. 

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“People asked us a lot of questions,’’ Garcetti told USA TODAY Sports after a news conference held at the StubHub Center. “I think once (the White House) laid to rest that people would be able to come into the country, that was kind of off the table.

“We actually had strong support from (the White House).’’

Things could have gotten stickier had Los Angeles insisted on hosting the 2024 Summer Games, which are being awarded to Paris. Trump, if elected to a second term, would still be in office at the time of the 2024 Games.

“It’d be hard for me to guess what IOC members think and feel,’’ Casey Wasserman, chairman of the Los Angeles bid committee, told USA TODAY Sports. “But in the end we were able to deliver the Olympics Games back to Los Angeles.’’

Trump congratulated the United States Olympic Committee for bringing the Summer Games back to the USA for the first time since Atlanta hosted in 1996. 

“I am confident the Summer Games of Los Angeles will exemplify both the Olympic ideal and the American spirit,’’ Trump said in a statement, “and we look forward to hosting them.’’