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talkpoliticsNow that the Rio Olympics are over, everyone's looking with hope to the next host in 2020, Tokyo. The IOC has decided to add 5 new sports to the next Olympics: baseball/softball, karate, skateboarding, climbing and surfing.
What's more important though is, will the Japanese learn from Rio's mistakes. Exceeding the budget for the Games has become a norm these days, but it's also becoming increasingly serious a problem. The initial budget for building the sports facilities in Rio was $ 3bn, but it eventually swelled to a staggering 4.5bn. The organisers of Tokyo'20 have come up with a similar initial budget, but the current estimates show that the amount could become 17.8bn, which is amazing. The average expense for the sports halls and stadiums is hovering around 9bn in recent years.
So far the most expensive summer Olympics were in London'12, 15bn. The Sochi winter games cost 22bn, but Putin forced his leash oligarchs to foot the bulk of that bill (in exchange for keeping their privileged positions in his circle - long story really). What matters though, is not just the sheer size of the expenses but also the end finance result of the host city. And Rio might have a story or two to tell there - not good stories, by the way.
Brazil got these games on a vote 7 years ago, at a time when its economy was promising bright times ahead. But these Olympics have caught Brazil off guard, amidst a severe crisis. The Rio games will likely be remembered with the huge number of organization gaffes, problems and scandals. Like the green swimming pools, which became an Internet meme. Or the living conditions in the Olympic village, which wasn't even completed at the time the athletes started to arrive.
The problem with the budget excesses is not just a matter of reputation in this case, but also an economic issue for Brazil. The country is in a political and financial crisis, and the Olympic burden was felt pretty severely. About 60% of the Brazilians believe the Olympics have brought more loss than benefit to their country, an Ubope poll shows.
Apart from being on the fast track to exceeding the intended budget by orders of magnitude well in advance, the Japanese will now have to focus on planning and organization pretty hard if they want to avoid repeating Rio's mistakes. Problem is, they're already having some problems, if only of minor nature (for now). For example, the organisers have quit their initial logo because it looked very much like the logo of some Belgian theatre, and the Belgian designer had filed a copyright lawsuit. Not much to worry about there.
The project for the Tokyo olympic stadium, which the famous architect Zaha Hadid was assigned to, was scrapped. It was an ambitious project that would've cost about $ 2.5bn, which would've made it the world's most expensive facility. After a number of controversies, the minister of education and sports resigned, and a new project was chosen (Japanese designer Kengo Kuma will work on it), the cost now "only" $ 1.5bn.
At least none of Brazil's security problems are expected in Japan. Brazil was already among the world leaders in terms of homicide before the games started, even if we discount Rio (by far the leader in that respect among all Brazilian cities). Despite all the security measures, theft was prevalent in the Olympic village this summer. Plus, there was the Zika concern as well. In Tokyo, the crime rates are much, much lower. But security remains a major concern for the organisers of course, since this is the world's biggest sports event, attracting millions of people to the host country. The good thing is, Japan still has 4 years to do things right.
Personally, I'm just happy that rugby has finally made it back into the games, even if only its castrated version :)
What's more important though is, will the Japanese learn from Rio's mistakes. Exceeding the budget for the Games has become a norm these days, but it's also becoming increasingly serious a problem. The initial budget for building the sports facilities in Rio was $ 3bn, but it eventually swelled to a staggering 4.5bn. The organisers of Tokyo'20 have come up with a similar initial budget, but the current estimates show that the amount could become 17.8bn, which is amazing. The average expense for the sports halls and stadiums is hovering around 9bn in recent years.
So far the most expensive summer Olympics were in London'12, 15bn. The Sochi winter games cost 22bn, but Putin forced his leash oligarchs to foot the bulk of that bill (in exchange for keeping their privileged positions in his circle - long story really). What matters though, is not just the sheer size of the expenses but also the end finance result of the host city. And Rio might have a story or two to tell there - not good stories, by the way.
Brazil got these games on a vote 7 years ago, at a time when its economy was promising bright times ahead. But these Olympics have caught Brazil off guard, amidst a severe crisis. The Rio games will likely be remembered with the huge number of organization gaffes, problems and scandals. Like the green swimming pools, which became an Internet meme. Or the living conditions in the Olympic village, which wasn't even completed at the time the athletes started to arrive.
The problem with the budget excesses is not just a matter of reputation in this case, but also an economic issue for Brazil. The country is in a political and financial crisis, and the Olympic burden was felt pretty severely. About 60% of the Brazilians believe the Olympics have brought more loss than benefit to their country, an Ubope poll shows.
Apart from being on the fast track to exceeding the intended budget by orders of magnitude well in advance, the Japanese will now have to focus on planning and organization pretty hard if they want to avoid repeating Rio's mistakes. Problem is, they're already having some problems, if only of minor nature (for now). For example, the organisers have quit their initial logo because it looked very much like the logo of some Belgian theatre, and the Belgian designer had filed a copyright lawsuit. Not much to worry about there.
The project for the Tokyo olympic stadium, which the famous architect Zaha Hadid was assigned to, was scrapped. It was an ambitious project that would've cost about $ 2.5bn, which would've made it the world's most expensive facility. After a number of controversies, the minister of education and sports resigned, and a new project was chosen (Japanese designer Kengo Kuma will work on it), the cost now "only" $ 1.5bn.
At least none of Brazil's security problems are expected in Japan. Brazil was already among the world leaders in terms of homicide before the games started, even if we discount Rio (by far the leader in that respect among all Brazilian cities). Despite all the security measures, theft was prevalent in the Olympic village this summer. Plus, there was the Zika concern as well. In Tokyo, the crime rates are much, much lower. But security remains a major concern for the organisers of course, since this is the world's biggest sports event, attracting millions of people to the host country. The good thing is, Japan still has 4 years to do things right.
Personally, I'm just happy that rugby has finally made it back into the games, even if only its castrated version :)
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(no subject)
Date: 25/8/16 15:51 (UTC)http://www.boredpanda.com/abandoned-olympic-venues/
(no subject)
Date: 27/8/16 14:11 (UTC)I wonder if there are people who travel around the world and explore such desolate places.
(no subject)
Date: 27/8/16 16:09 (UTC)There are. There's a cottage industry in "Decay Porn" tourism; Detroit has people hosting photo tours.