Kobe Bryant joins board of directors for Los Angeles' 2024 Olympics bid
Now that the debut season of Kobe Bryant’s strange “Canvas” series is in the books, the recently retired Los Angeles Lakers legend was apparently looking for something else to fill some of his time. He found it with a spot on the board of directors for LA’s bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics.
[Follow Ball Don’t Lie on social media: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Tumblr]
Bryant broke the news from the Rose Bowl alongside Olympic gold medalist and LA2024 vice chair Janet Evans in a live video hosted by legendary sportscaster Al Michaels on LA2024’s Facebook page.
“I’m extremely excited about joining the board here and trying to bring the Olympics back to Los Angeles,” said Bryant, joking that he was pushing his daughter to make an Olympic bid of her own. “I’ve convinced my 14-year-old daughter to start training with me at 5 o’clock in the morning.”
Evans also serves as chair of the bid committee’s Athletes’ Commission, for which Bryant will now serve as the 100th member. Kobe, of course, won two Olympic gold medals for USA Basketball.
Lakers president of basketball operations Magic Johnson also serves on LA2024’s Board of Directors.
After Hamburg, Rome, Budapest and Boston all withdrew from consideration over financial concerns, the International Olympic Committee’s decision will come down to LA or Paris, with the losing city potentially hosting the 2028 Olympic Games. The decision is expected on Sept. 13. Tokyo will host the 2020 Summer Olympics. LA has twice hosted the Olympics, first in 1932 and then in 1984.
– – – – – – –
Ben Rohrbach is a contributor for Ball Don’t Lie and Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rohrbach_ben@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @brohrbach
More from Yahoo Sports:
• Eagles drop talented WR after less than a year
• Sources: Utah agrees to acquire Ricky Rubio from Minnesota
• Best possible moves in NBA free agency
• Police: Venus Williams at fault in fatal crash
