[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="600" caption="Chicagoans at the Olympic Bid Rally in Daley Plaza on October 2nd are stunned by Chicago's quick exit"][/caption] Rachel Stone

Staff Writer

Most of us students were in class when we heard the news: “Chicago knocked out of contention for the 2016 Olympics in the first round.” And just like that, the hope that most fellow Chicagoans had harbored, campaigned for, and even dreamed about had just been brutally shoved aside. Some took the news harder than others; Freshmen Grace Brandt and Tybie Geleerd shared the mutual feeling of disappointment that loomed over the city, yet Miss Geleerd went on to add optimistically that she “wish[es] that we could have done more to boost ourselves in the competition, but hopefully it will happen in our lifetime.” Fellow freshman Jackson Bubala is in agreement with this statement, and elaborates on this to mention that “Our presentation in Copenhagen was very dull, boring and not representative of Chicago’s personality at all.” Many more were discontented with the news; “It would have been so exciting!” says sophomore Katherine Pollock. According to ninth grader Kristen Garret, “We should have gotten it! The fact that we were eliminated in the first round was unbelievable. It would have been great because the world would get to see how beautiful our city is, which a lot of people don’t know.” Though not available for comment, it was apparent that most of the student body sporting Chicago 2016 shirts was in agreement (and the sighs of defeat echoing the hallways served to prove that point). Though many were in favor of the summer games being hosted here, some held the opposite opinion. Cam Arkin pointed out that “having the Olympics in Chicago would have been a madhouse… The city has congestion and construction already… Not to mention we truly don’t have that kind of money… and government taxes would go up.” Freshmen representative Ian Spear disagreed with this, and all those who are “all worried about the economic cost and supporting [the games] with the economy the way it is,” and argues that the situation will be completely different “in 7 years (at which point the economy would be in a totally different place).” An outside source (who neglected to leave her name) played devils advocate and rebutted that “the economic situation would not be drastically different in time for the Olympics; not to mention, the funds needed to construct the Olympic Village would need to be obtained in advance. As in many situations in the past, the necessary money would probably come directly out of taxpayer’s pockets (which the current economy cannot afford).” Ninth grader Emma Michalak commented in agreement, and said that “it would have affected our city” in ways such as “more traffic and less money to help people.” In the end, the decision has already been made; and although we are now an open target for ridicule (thank you Saturday Night Live…), this city has even more of an incentive for future games. As we all have learned from the Blagojevich fiasco, no defeat or scandal can keep our city down. We will campaign harder, dream bigger, and maybe someday a Latin student will create the next presentation.]]>