The US Olympic Committee (USOC) has confirmed it will seek to re-enter the Olympic Games bidding fray from 2024, but has shelved any prospect of a tilt at the 2022 Winter Games.

Following a USOC board meeting on Tuesday, the Committee has stated that any bid for 2022 would be hindered by the tight timeline, with proposals due to be entered in the autumn of 2013. “Hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games in the United States is of paramount importance to us,” said USOC chief executive Scott Blackmun. “We want to submit a bid that is viable and that adds value to the worldwide Olympic Movement. We believe a 2024 or 2026 bid will give us the best chance of achieving those ends, and therefore will not submit a bid to host the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.”

The announcement comes as a blow to Denver, which has been actively investigating a 2022 Games bid, while Lake Tahoe and Bozeman, Montana were also linked with bids. The Associated Press reported that Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco, along with Chicago, New York and Dallas could all be likely contenders for a 2024 Summer Games bid.

Blackmun added: “In addition to the board’s decision regarding 2022, we also voted today to establish a board working group charged with the task of exploring a potential US bid to host either the 2024 or 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Games. That group will make its initial report to the full board at our December meeting. We are firmly committed to submitting the most viable candidate city possible and to making a meaningful contribution to the worldwide Olympic and Paralympic Movements. We believe that exploring a bid for the 2024 or 2026 Games will give us the greatest opportunity for success.”

Tuesday’s announcement came after the International Olympic Committee and the USOC brought an end to a long-running dispute over the share of Olympic Games commercial revenues by announcing a new deal at SportAccord Convention in May. The deal opened the door to a possible US Olympic Games bid, with the USOC having pulled back from entering a bid since Chicago finished last in the Candidate Cities vote for the 2016 Summer Olympics.