ROME — Rome is now officially a candidate for the Olympic and Paralympic Games of 2024. 

  The letter that makes a country’s commitment to organise the sports event legally recognised was sent on Friday September 11 to the IOC (International Olympic Committee). On September 16, they will reveal the names of all of the cities that have come forward.  

  On Friday September 11, at the Capitol, the president of the Committee for Rome 2024, Luca di Montezemolo, the president of the Italian National Olympics Committee, Giovanni Malagò and the mayor, Ignazio Marino, signed the letter that formalises the Italian participation in the quest for the games.

  Now, the capital will begin the process of building and sharing a project that will provide both athletes and the world with “the opportunity to experience the excitement and Olympic spirit” on a stage of unparalleled beauty. 

  No other city in the world can offer such a wealth of art, history and culture that embraces such a wide span of time, and that allows one “to compete in the Olympic Games in the most spectacular and symbolic places of the Eternal City.”

  The letter explains that Rome in fact has many sports facilities, some of which are parks, which will be used for the 2024 Olympics, requiring very little modernisation, and with the use of removable structures, if deemed necessary. 

  Finally, in the letter, there is a reminder of the Olympic values, which in a multicultural place like Rome, “where diversity becomes the backbone of equality”, can really bridge the gap between peace and friendship amongst peoples.