Boston's bid to host the 2024 Olympics is offically over, after the city and the U.S. Olympic Committee severed ties after a board teleconference on Monday.
The bid soured within days of its beginning in January and failed to get - and keep - the support of key Boston politicians.
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh says he would not be pressured into signing the contract that puts the city on the hook for any cost overruns.
"This is a commitment that I cannot make without assurances that Boston and it's residents will be protected. I refuse to mortgage the future of the city away. I refuse to put Boston on the hook for over-runs and I refuse to commit to signing a guarantee that uses tax payers' dollars to pay for the Olympics."
No Boston Olympics Co-Chairman Chris Dempsey led the citizen's charge to kill the bid.
"Well it's certainly hard when you're dealing with a bid that requires building the three most expensive Olympic venues from scratch. And Boston's 2024 plan was always a costly bid, that required a lot of building of sporting infrastructure."
There are only seven weeks left before the cities have to be officially nominated.
The decision has thrown the bid process - and hopes that the USA will host another Olympics - into doubt.
However, the US Olympic Committee says the federation wants to stay in the race. Los Angeles has been touted as the likely alternative host city.
For CRI, I'm Luo Bin.
