Back in 1994, IOC member Dick Pound declared the only way Salt Lake City’s bid for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games would lose to Quebec City was because Utah’s capital had “no more rabbits to pull out of the hat”. Yup, I know – bless Dick for thinking that’s how Olympic bids are won.
Working on more conventional lines, however, the Salt Lake City bid president and his senior vice-president shipped $1,200 worth of rabbits (trivia buffs may care to know that amounted to 12 rabbits) to Pound. Dick and his wife declined to accept the rabbits, though other IOC members were rather less circumspect about receiving certain deliveries/land deals/IOUs for full college tuition for their kids. Naturally, Salt Lake City did end up winning.
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