Kathy Carter Steps Down as LA28 Chief Executive Officer

Kathy Carter will step down as chief executive officer of the LA28 organizing committee and will be a senior advisor going forward in what organizers describe as the beginning of a new phase with just over four years to go until Los Angeles hosts the Olympic and Paralympic Summer Games.

Carter joined LA28 in October 2018 as chief revenue officer and was named chief executive officer in 2021. Carter was the second LA28 chief executive since Los Angeles was first awarded the Games; her predecessor, Gene Sykes, was elected chair in June 2022 of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee.

“Now is the right time for me to pass the torch,” Carter said in a statement to Reuters. “As of 2024, I will transition from my role as CEO and am honored to continue with LA28 as Senior Advisor.”

Carter oversaw LA28’s founding partnerships and led a partnership with NBCUniversal to give brands elevated opportunity around the Games. LA28 also announced a global hospitality program in collaboration with On Location, the International Olympic Committee, the International Paralympic Committee, Paris 2024 and Milano-Cortina 2026. Before joining LA28, Carter was a founding member of Major League Soccer, spending a cumulative 20 years at MLS and Soccer United Marketing, including the last eight years as president.

In mid-October, the IOC approved the LA28 sports program with cricket, flag football,  lacrosse, squash and baseball/softball added to the Games.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the most-recent budget for the 2028 Summer Games is $6.9 billion and has been adjusted twice since the bid process began. Organizers have vowed to pay all expenses through sponsorships, ticket sales and other revenue streams and city and state legislators have pledged taxpayer dollars to pay for overruns.

“We have undoubtedly built a strong foundation for the next four years and now is the time to transition to the next phase,” LA28 Chairperson Casey Wasserman said in a statement.