Hosting the Olympic Games [Hardcover]

Hosting the Olympic Gamesreveals the true costs involved for the cities that hold these large-scale sporting events. It uncovers the financing of the Games, reviewing existing studies to evaluate the costs and benefits, and draws on case study experiences of the Summer and Winter Games from the past forty years to assess the short- and long-term urban legacies for host cities.

Written in an easily accessible style and format, it provides an in-depth critical analysis into the franchise model of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and offers an alternative vision for future Games. This book is an important contribution to understanding the consequences for the host cities of Olympic Games.

1. Setting The Scene  2. The Olympics: Past and Present  3. Financing the Games  4. Bidding  5. Rising Costs  6. Costs and Benefits  7. Urban Legacies  8. Alternatives to Event Capture  A Guide to Further Reading. 

Hosting the Olympic Games is a welcome addition to the growing body of literature that cautions cities about the significant financial, ecological, social and political costs of hosting the Games. After discussing the problems with the current hosting experience, Short provides a thoughtful discussion on how the system can be reformed.

Andrew Zimbalist, Professor of Economics, Smith College, USA.

 

Unlikely to be wined and dined by the IOC, Professor Short goes for the jugular on the global juggernaut that is the Summer and Winter Olympics. Written with his characteristic clarity and ?lan, Hosting The Olympic Gamessuccinctly and devastatingly unpacks the ongoing burdens of debt, redistribution, environmental damage, corruption and other dirty little secrets. Cumulatively far outweighing the positive legacies, thl³)