Detroit's Unfulfilled Olympic Dreams

Quick question: Which city has the record for most Olympic bids without winning or hosting? The answer is Detroit.

Detroit is now a cautionary tale of a city built on a single industry and how white flight can destroy an entire region. However, Detroit was once one of the most important and wealthy cities in America. It was either the fourth or fifth largest city behind only New York, Chicago, Philadelphia and then later Los Angeles. It rose through the auto industry. It had a lot of money and a broad middle class for a good portion of the 20th century. Detroit bid on every Summer Games from 1940 to 1972 and failed every time.

These are the stories and reasons behind its failure.

track and field history detroit olympics

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Jesse Squire

I was second in the 1980 Olympic* long jump. (*Cub Scout Olympics, Pack 99, 9-10 age group.)