May 25, 2012 11:02 PM UTC

Denver's Olympic Bid Inches Forward

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• by: Colorado Pols

If Denver first started to become recognized as a “world-class city” — to borrow Mayor Hancock’s talking point — during a coming-out party of sorts while hosting the 2008 Democratic National Convention, bringing the Winter Olympics to town would seal the deal.

From ESPN:

Colorado’s governor and the mayor of Denver say they’re pleased the International Olympic Committee and U.S. Olympic Committee have reached a revenue-sharing agreement.

In a joint statement issued Thursday, Gov. John Hickenlooper and Mayor Michael Hancock said the agreement is one step in a marathon toward a potential USOC bid for the return of the Olympics to U.S. soil.

Denver is among cities that have expressed early interest in bidding for the 2022 Winter Olympics.

While Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper would no longer be in office by the time the Olympic games roll around, Hancock could ostensibly be rounding out his third term as Denver’s mayor.

Hosting the Winter Olympics would be a crowning achievement on top of much of the work both Hancock and Hickenlooper have accomplished in their respective terms of office. For Hancock, who has struggled to splash onto the national stage as loudly as he would’ve liked, the Olympics — and perhaps more importantly, the selection of Denver as the 2022 host city — would vindicate all of the mayor’s efforts to brand Denver as world-class. And as Denver’s profile rises, so too would the political star of Denver’s mayor.

As for the reluctantly-charismatic Hickenlooper, well, bringing the Olympics to Colorado would just be another accomplishment which the governor could parlay into talking points for a national campaign, whether Hick wants it or not.