The northern Japan city of Sapporo was given a tight timeline to prepare a possible bid for the 2034 Winter Olympics after the International Olympic Committee took steps Friday to select both the 2030 and 2034 hosts simultaneously.
The IOC executive board, currently meeting in Mumbai, has proposed the IOC hold its vote on both hosts at the same time and is expected to narrow down its choices to host the next two Winter Olympics within this year.
Sapporo, which hosted the 1972 Olympics and had once been a favorite to host again, officially backed out of its 2030 bid Wednesday, citing the difficulty in building support for its bid in the wake of bid-rigging and bribery scandals related to 2021's Tokyo Olympics.
Japanese Olympic Committee President Yasuhiro Yamashita has proposed Sapporo bid for 2034 or later, and Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto has agreed to that plan.
While Sapporo has yet to enter a bid for 2034, Salt Lake City, Utah, the 2002 host, is currently the clear favorite to get IOC approval.
On Monday, the executive board is set to recommend the possible addition of baseball and softball, cricket, lacrosse, flag football and squash to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics program.
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Sapporo's 2030 Winter Olympics bid dropped, 2034 or later targeted
