The U.S. Olympic Committee will move forward with exploring a bid to host a future Olympics without making a commitment to an actual bid, people familiar with Thursday's board meeting tell The Associated Press.

The board approved a proposal from a committee formed to examine bids for either the 2024 Summer or 2026 Winter Olympics. The committee recommended the board move forward with the exploratory process without necessarily committing to a bid.

People familiar with the meetings spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the quarterly board meeting was still in session and the group's actions hadn't been made public.

The United States hasn't hosted the Olympics since 2002. Its last bid came for the 2016 Summer Games and the bid city, Chicago, finished last in the voting.