Colorado is the only state to turn down hosting t

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Transcript

00:00Today's big question. Why is Colorado the only state to ever reject the Olympics?

00:06Now, before we head to the polls and vote on this very important issue, let's consider the facts.

00:12The Summer Olympics have been held in 24 different countries, but only one state here in the U.S. has ever rejected the Games, Colorado,

00:20and they turned down the Winter Olympics specifically in 1976. But why?

00:25I mean, hosting the Olympics seems like a pretty great opportunity for a city or state, right?

00:32Well, not if it costs too much money and or causes too much pollution.

00:37That's what voters in Colorado said in 1976. They didn't want to spend the money to host the Winter Olympics.

00:44And they were also worried about the impact of all those athletes and spectators on their air quality.

00:50Now, this was decades before global warming was on anyone's radar.

00:53But the residents of Colorado were already feeling the effects of too much pollution.

01:00Denver, Colorado Springs, and Aspen had all experienced several air quality crises by the 1960s and 70s.

01:08Those are the cities that wanted to host the 1976 Winter Olympics.

01:13And at the time, Colorado was already feeling the financial strain of hosting major sporting events.

01:19In 1960, Denver hosted the NCAA Ski Championships.

01:25Two years later, they had the U.S. Olympic Trials for the Winter Olympics.

01:30And then in 1964, they hosted the Winter X Games.

01:34Now, I don't know if you've ever hosted an event or party, but sometimes it can be hard to get people to help out.

01:39Imagine doing that seven days in a row for almost two weeks.

01:43Well, that's how the people of Colorado felt by the time 1976 rolled around.

01:48They didn't want to host the Olympics.

01:51So a group called the National Committee for a Responsible Olympics led a successful campaign to keep the Olympics out of Colorado.

01:58They said the financial burden and environmental impact just wasn't worth it.

02:03The state's voters agreed.

02:0553% voted against hosting the Winter Olympics.

02:08Now, this wasn't some sort of protest vote.

02:12Colorado was actually in the running to host the 1980 Winter Olympics.

02:16But they lost to New York, which ultimately led to Lake Placid, New York hosting the 1980 Winter Olympics.

02:24After that, Colorado did take another run at hosting the Winter Olympics in 2030.

02:29But they lost out to Salt Lake City, Utah.

02:32Maybe one day the feeling will pass and Colorado will once again be open to hosting the Olympics.

02:37But for now, they're officially the only state to ever say no.

02:41That's one minute.

02:42See you next time.

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