Mayor Gives Glimpse of Olympic Event Planned for Oklahoma City

The Paris Olympics are wrapping up its first week, and there have been several historic wins for Team USA that already have people thinking about the 2028 Olympics, which are set to be hosted in Los Angeles. But Oklahoma City will be the site for for two of the competitions: softball and canoe slalom.

Softball is not currently taking place at the Paris Olympics, but it was recently announced that the sport would be returning for the 2028 LA Olympics. And Oklahoma City will host the Olympic event in 2028 due to an effort to maximize existing facilities and keep costs low. Oklahoma City has been dubbed the Softball Capital of the World as it's home to college softball and USA softball.

As for canoe slalom, Oklahoma City already has a stake in training Olympic athletes in this event. Oklahoma City's Riversport is an official US Olympic and Paralympic training site for rowing and canoe/kayak athletes. It is one of the few training sites in the nation.

Oklahoma City Mayor Holt is attending the Paris Olympics.

Even though Oklahoma is four years away from hosting two Olympic events, Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt is already working to prepare his city for the Olympics. Mayor Holt is currently in Paris to experience the Olympics, network on behalf of his hometown and to see what the canoe slalom Olympic event will be like for Oklahoma City.

According to an article from the Associated Press, Mayor Holt is in Paris with a group of 10 others from Oklahoma City, which includes city staff and members of the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber, which are the ones who will act as the local host committee for the 2028 Olympics.

The article also states that Mayor Holt has been working on bringing these events to Oklahoma City since 2018. He has been working behind the scenes with the IOC executive committee to approve moving these events to Oklahoma City for the 2028 Olympics.