LUMINARIES LIGHT OLYMPIC BID MAYOR, GOVERNOR, HEROES CITE HISTORY FOR L.A.'S CLAIM.

Byline: BRENT HOPKINS Staff Writer

With the Coliseum and 75 years of memories standing behind them Friday, ``The Marathon Mayor'' and bodybuilding governor told the world that Los Angeles deserves to host the 2016 Olympics.

It has the facilities, they said, from the storied stadium to the modern Staples Center. It has the people, they noted, with more than 1,000 Olympians hailing from the region over the years. And most importantly, they stressed, it has the history.

``In this very stadium,'' solemnly intoned Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, whom other speakers praised as quite a runner in his own right, ``Carl Lewis set record after record and won medal after medal.''

On Monday, the Southern California Committee for the Olympic Games will formally present its proposal to host the Summer Games to the United States Olympic Committee. Its pitch, pitting the city against Chicago, will rely heavily on memories of successful, profitable competitions in 1932 and 1984 and its slew of large facilities.

The only thing the area lacks, backers conceded, is a shooting facility, which would be built at Pomona's Fairplex. Athletes would bunk at UCLA, while the media and Olympics officials would settle in at USC.

And, to add a little political and celebrity heft to its pitch, the SCCOG enlisted the help of the state's most high-profile resident. He addressed the crowd in English and a bit of German and vowed that, even hobbled by crutches, he would throw his weight into winning the bid.

``I will do everything,'' Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said. ``I will fly anywhere. ... It would bring great joy to all Californians to have the Olympics here.''

To formally hype their proclamation, the plan's backers arranged a ceremony with much of the fanfare of the games themselves. The USC marching band blew John Williams' ``Summon the Heroes'' as the mayor and governor made their way in, surrounded by athletic legends and a cavalcade of kids. Once they'd made their case, they dramatically relit the Olympic flame memorably kindled by Rafer Johnson in the 1984 proceedings.

Bruce Jenner, gold-medalist decathlete and alternate flame-lighter during L.A.'s last stint as host, recalled the city's efforts fondly.

``L.A. was a changing point in the Olympic movement,'' he said. ``The Canadians lost money in '76, we boycotted the '80 games, but '84 was just so good. I'd love to see it come back.''

brent.hopkins(at)dailynews.com

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Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger clasp hands Friday in front of the torch at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum as they gather with Olympians to lobby to bring the 2016 Summer Games to the city. Also in the picture at left, former Olympics swimmer Janet Evans; second from left, Barry Sanders, chairman of the Southern California Committee for the Olympic Games; and right, Fabian Nunez, California Assembly speaker.

Michael Owen Baker/Associated Press