"It's hard to predict. We gave our best, everyone gave their best," said Daley.
Mayor Daley and the rest of the bid team are back in Chicago on Sunday and they're not looking back. Upon arrival at O'Hare Airport yesterday, the mayor was reflective, saying he doesn't know whether Chicago really ever had a chance against Rio, but that as the city's leader he had to take that journey."We are disappointed and upset but this does not take anything away from us as a great city or the people that volunteered and worked on this, Olympians and Paralympians. No, it doesn't," Mayor Daley said.
Rather than dwell, the mayor spoke of other aspects of the trip to Copenhagen, including business opportunities and models for development that could be used as examples for Chicago.
"I learned a lot from Copenhagen," said Daley.
Still, it's clear that there is disappointment, and some of the former Olympians who were part of the bid team talked about their initial reactions on hearing Chicago had been knocked out of the competition in the first round of voting.
"We were riding on the bus, and they told us we were eliminated the first round. I don't think you could have punched us any harder," said former Olympian David Robinson.
In another sign that the mayor is getting back to the city's business immediately, Daley's first words on Saturday were not about the Olympics, but a condolence message to Derrion Albert's family. He said one of the first things he'll do now that he's back is try to find ways to break the code of silence that is firmly rooted in many of Chicago's communities.
