It was an historic day when Rio de Janeiro was chosen as host for the 2016 Summer Olympic games -- the first emerging market ever to host the games.

It many ways it marked a formal "coming out" party, if you will, for emerging markets. It was a statement -- a confirmation -- of the the developing world's improved status in the early globalization era. It said, "We've arrived."

Over the weekend, Chicago received word that it was selected by the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) as the U.S. candidate to host the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. The Windy City narrowly edged out rivaling venue Los Angeles in what USOC Chairman Peter Ueberroth called a "very, very close" vote. (Didn't L.A. have the games in 1984? The games of Mary Lou Retton and Carl Lewis? I think the USOC made the fair choice.)

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley said the bid provides "a great opportunity for us as we move forward to really sell Chicago and America." The proposed $366 million Olympic Stadium would be located on the South Side of the city, while a $1.1 billion Olympic village would be constructed along the city's picturesque lakefront. "Personally, I love the idea of athletes on the lakefront," Ueberroth noted, adding "Let's hope Chicago gets the opportunity."

But don't start making your Drake hotel reservations just yet ... the International Olympic Committee will not make a final decision on the hosting city until October 2009. Other cities with their proverbial hats in the ring include Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro, Rome, Madrid, New Delhi, and Qatar. New York City lost its bid for the 2012 Summer Games to London; the last summer Olympics hosted on American soil was in 1996, when Atlanta acted as host.

Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.