With the announcement of the site of the 2016 Olympics set for Friday afternoon, there are many questions about the process that will lead to the naming of the host city. Before we get to our own comprehensive preview Friday morning, Fourth-Place Medal provides some answers to frequently asked questions about the Olympic bid meeting in Copenhagen:

When will the host city be announced?

Voting is scheduled to take place between 11:10 and 11:40 a.m. ET, with the press conference announcing the winner set for 12:30 p.m. ET. Expect to hear a winner sometime a little before 1 p.m. ET. (It should be noted that these votes often take longer than expected, so don't be surprised if there is a delay.)

Which cities are bidding?

The four bid cities are Chicago, Madrid, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo. (Click on the link for Fourth-Place Medal's brief preview for each bid city.)

Who's the favorite?

Oddsmakers have set Chicago as the favorite, with Rio de Janeiro trailing slightly. Madrid and Tokyo are given much longer odds to win, which suggests that this will be a two-horse race between Chicago and Rio.

How does the vote work?

IOC members vote by secret ballot until one city receives a majority; the city receiving the fewest votes is eliminated after each round. The maximum number of rounds is three.

The IOC has 106 members. The president, Jacques Rogge, doesn't vote. Members from a country with a bid city in the race are ineligible to vote as long as their candidate is still in contention. That means 99 members are eligible to vote in the first round; more in subsequent rounds. In the event of a tie vote in the early rounds, a runoff is held between the two cities. If there is a tie in the final round, Rogge can vote or ask the IOC executive board to break the deadlock.

Where can I watch?

Our good friends at universalsports.com will be providing live, free streaming coverage of the bid announcement and each city's presentation. Click here to watch coverage of the bid announcement starting at 10 a.m. (three hours ahead of the announcement). To watch the presentations for each city and to see a great recap of events thus far, click here.

What is President Obama's role?

By the time you're reading this, Barack Obama has likely left Copenhagen. The president will speak at Chicago's presentation (at 2:50 a.m. ET) and then work the room afterward with a press conference, trying to sway votes to Chicago. (His wife has already been in Copenhagen having one-on-one meetings with high-ranking IOC officials.) After that, Obama and the First Lady will meet with the Danish Prime Minister and will then depart Copenhagen at 6:55 a.m. ET. The first couple will be in the air when the announcement is made.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this post.