Things no less rotten in Denmark

The mood was no different in Copenhagen, Denmark, on Friday than in Chicago among backers of the city's failed bid for the 2016 Olympics.

"General disappointment," wrote Fran Bolson, president of the Woodfield Chicago Northwest Convention Bureau and a member of the Chicago lobbying contingent, "but not without incredible pride."

Bolson reported the mood of the group was "jubilant" after Chicago 2016's opening final presentation to the International Olympic Committee, "particularly after Obamas," she wrote in an e-mail to the Daily Herald.

Yet there were concerns about questions regarding the far-flung venues for shooting, in south-suburban University Park, and cycling, in Madison, Wis. Harsh U.S. travel restrictions also came up.

Bolson said that Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, also went on the offensive with a "very strategic and pointed" presentation specifically designed to undercut Chicago.

Yet there was also speculation they might have hurt their own cause with an "overly aggressive" approach.

Members of the Chicago contingent largely admired but dismissed the Tokyo and Madrid, Spain, presentations.

"As the presentations ended, and the entire Chicago contingency moved to the venue for the announcement, the nervousness became a bit more palpable," Bolson wrote. "For many individuals within this group, over three years of work was quickly coming to a conclusion.

"The room with probably 250 people came to a silence as the process started," she added. "Similar to what I read online (from) Chicago, it seems there was an atmosphere of disbelief when the IOC president reported that Chicago had been eliminated. ... It was a quiet, almost empty feeling in the room - hoping for victory, not elimination so quickly."