In the past few days there has been an ongoing debate over the upcoming Summer Olympics set to begin in this August in Tokyo. After The Times reported on the games getting scrapped, followed by an announcement by the IOC and Tokyo organizers that the report was false, Monday brought a another twist in the Olympic saga from Jimmy Patronis, the Chief Financial Officer of Florida, who offered his home state as an ideal alternative for the upcoming games.
Dear @Olympics Committee, I know this is a very informal way to interview for this prestigious opportunity but I would like to thread a few references for your consideration……. https://t.co/xe8tvzsLvk
— Jimmy Patronis (@JimmyPatronis) January 25, 2021
But wait, there is more…
This coming year will be the 17th @SuperBowl that the @NFL has hosted in Florida, before your committee asks, yes that is more than any other region in the world. #Amazing…….
— Jimmy Patronis (@JimmyPatronis) January 25, 2021
Patronis backed up yesterdays statement with a letter to the IOC following his tweets with you guessed it, more tweets!
With Japan rethinking the @Olympics now is a great time for @IOA_Official to deploy a site selection team to Florida. (Especially as we’re about to host the Super Bowl LV.)
— Jimmy Patronis (@JimmyPatronis) January 25, 2021
➡️ Read my full letter to the International Olympic Committee: https://t.co/8OkzDc3d7H
Can’t the @Olympics just come to Florida? Everyone else is to the tune of 900 new residents a day! #ComeToFlorida 🇺🇸 🇮🇹 🇩🇪 🇬🇷 🇬🇧 🇯🇲 🇫🇷 🇨🇱 🇲🇽 🇨🇦 🇯🇵 🇪🇬 🇮🇳 🇳🇴 🇦🇺 #WinGoldInFlorida 🏅#flapol https://t.co/uKJfL3VLm2
— Jimmy Patronis (@JimmyPatronis) January 25, 2021
His letter to the International Olympic Committee highlights the contents of his tweets emphasizing how Florida has managed to host the NBA bubble, College and NFL football while also crediting places like Disney as models for how to operate during the pandemic.
While the move by Patronis does seem a little far fetched, Florida has been able to host a number of sports events, including the PTO 2020 Championship at Challenge Daytona last December. He does neglect to mention that the state has seen 1,667,755 COVID-19 cases and over 26,500 deaths from the disease. In comparison, Japan has had 368,143 cases and just over 5,000 deaths. (In case you were wondering – Japan’s population is 126.3 million, while Florida’s is 21.48 million.)