Michelle Obama Makes Chicago Olympics Presence Felt In Copenhagen
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COPENHAGEN — Having one-on-one VIP meetings, dining with dignitaries and stars, flattering Olympic officials by taking notice of the little things that count, Michele Obama wasted no time going to work for her hometown.
Her job: pitching Chicago for the 2016 Olympics and making every minute count.
The first lady arrived here Wednesday to lend her support to the city's efforts to win those games. As head of Chicago's delegation – and her husband's representative until he arrives Friday – she plans to meet with as many International Olympic Committee members as possible to try to persuade them to pick the city over Rio de Janeiro, Madrid and Tokyo.
"She is one impressive lady," said Kevan Gosper, a senior IOC member from Australia. "She has got great charm, great presence. She's very friendly, very informal, a very good listener. She's a great advocate for the games."
President Barack Obama has been an ardent supporter of the bid since he was a U.S. Senator, and he's been working the phones in recent weeks. But when it looked as if the health care debate might keep him in Washington, he asked his wife to go to Copenhagen to meet with IOC members.
Funny, gracious and accomplished, she also happens to know Chicago neighborhoods, having grown up on the South Side. She lived just a short walk from the planned Olympic stadium before moving to Washington.
"We understand that sports save lives, that it makes dreams come true, that it creates visions in kids' heads that they can be the next David Robinson, the next Barack Obama," Mrs. Obama told 300 Chicago supporters at a welcome dinner, her voice catching.
"If we can show people that we understand that power and that possibility, then they will have the confidence that not only will we have the Olympics in a city that works, but we'll execute this thing with a kind of passion and openness and sincerity that the world so greatly wants to see in us. So let's get it done."
Although IOC president Jacques Rogge has taken great pains to say heads of state aren't expected to attend, their presence has been instrumental in recent votes. Tony Blair is widely credited for tipping the 2012 vote in London's favor, spending two days doing one-on-one meetings with IOC members in his hotel suite. Vladimir Putin did much the same thing two years later, when Sochi won the 2014 Olympics.
Valerie Jarrett, a senior adviser to the president and former vice chair of Chicago 2016, met with Blair last week to get advice on making the best use of these last few days. While she won't divulge details, she said his input was "extremely helpful."
Of course, the Obamas and Jarrett have a little experience of their own with elections.
As the first lady walked through the hotel lobby, she spotted IOC member Nicole Hoevertsz, who a day earlier had been appointed permanent secretary of Aruba's Council of Ministers.
"She said, 'Congratulations on your new appointment.' She already knew," said Hoevertsz, who gave Mrs. Obama a pin. "That was a very nice detail."
She began a "pretty lengthy" list of one-on-one meetings with IOC members in the Chicago 2016 suite, where pictures of the city and its planned venues decorated the warm, bright rooms. A few hours later, she joined talk show host Oprah Winfrey, Olympians David Robinson and Nadia Comaneci and others at a dinner for about 300 supporters of Chicago's bid.
"It's tremendous that we are all here as we now sprint to the finish line on Friday with the best team captain and co-captain we could ever have," Winfrey said, drawing cheers as she introduced Mrs. Obama.
While the first lady promoted all facets of the bid, what mattered most, she said, is what the games will leave behind. Not the stadiums, not the Olympic village, but the inspiration that just might change a child's life.
Watching Comaneci score a string of perfect 10s in gymnastics at the Montreal Games, the first lady recalled thinking, "I can do that, too."
"I didn't know then I'd be 5-11," she said. "It is so important for us to raise up the platform of fitness and competition and fair play, to teach kids to cheer on the victors and empathize with those in defeat. But most important, to recognize all of the hard work it takes to do something special."
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AP Sports Writer Steve Wilson in London contributed to this report.
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NANCY ARMOUR 09/30/09 06:34 PM ET Associated Press