The Tultuous Conflict Surrounding The Issues Of Hosting Mega-Sports Events Case Study
Introduction
The tumultuous conflict surrounding the issue of hosting mega-sporting events e.g. the Olympic Games or the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup, in developing nations has always been a moot point. However, these days less developed countries such as those present in Latin America and the Caribbean especially garnered international attention and triggered controversy by hosting events like the FIFA World Cup in Brazil in 2014, Copa América in Chile in 2015, and the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in the summer of 2016 [1]. While those in favor make reference to the fact that international sport events are, as Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said “a social, economic and environmental sustainable development …show more content…
Barcelona, Sydney, Beijing have all seen this from hosting the Olympics.
However, concerning the operating costs of a mega-event, which include security services and usage of scarce resources such as energy and water, they are enormous and steadily increasing. Brazil’s Olympic Games, for example, were running 51% over budget with a cost blowout of $1.6bn, even as the country was sinking under its second year of recession [16]
Moreover, one of the major challenges that host cities face after the Olympics is utilizing the many facilities and stadiums that were created in order to host the events. In some cases, such as the Barcelona Olympics of 1992, cities are reinvigorated, and the facilities that were constructed and updated for the games continue to serve the host country.[17] However, in other cases facilities, such as the large collection of stadiums constructed for the FIFA World Cup in and around Rio de Janeiro.[18] become “white elephants,” useless structures that are costly to maintain and upkeep, and to this day are not utilized and continue to waste public funds for upkeep and …show more content…
One solution is to to attract other large-scale sporting events to the hosting country. Qatar’s Khalifa International Stadium, for example, will be one of the main venues for the IAAF World Championships in Athletics in 2019. And Qatar has said it is determined to bid again to host to the Summer Olympics.[20]
Another solution is include “modular” designs in the infrastructures’ plan so that parts of the venues can be disassembled and scaled down after the main mega-event has taken place. Rio, for instance, has structures that can be removed, rebuilt, and repurposed: Future Arena, the handball venue, will provide the material to build four 500-student primary schools in the city’s Jacarepaguá neighborhood while the Olympics Aquatics Stadium will be disassembled and its components used to erect two community swimming centers; one in Madureira Park and one in the Campo Grande area.
Mayor Eduardo Paes calls it “nomadic architecture”[21] and it is a way to to balance Olympic “legacy” with urban
The tumultuous conflict surrounding the issue of hosting mega-sporting events e.g. the Olympic Games or the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup, in developing nations has always been a moot point. However, these days less developed countries such as those present in Latin America and the Caribbean especially garnered international attention and triggered controversy by hosting events like the FIFA World Cup in Brazil in 2014, Copa América in Chile in 2015, and the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in the summer of 2016 [1]. While those in favor make reference to the fact that international sport events are, as Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said “a social, economic and environmental sustainable development …show more content…
Barcelona, Sydney, Beijing have all seen this from hosting the Olympics.
However, concerning the operating costs of a mega-event, which include security services and usage of scarce resources such as energy and water, they are enormous and steadily increasing. Brazil’s Olympic Games, for example, were running 51% over budget with a cost blowout of $1.6bn, even as the country was sinking under its second year of recession [16]
Moreover, one of the major challenges that host cities face after the Olympics is utilizing the many facilities and stadiums that were created in order to host the events. In some cases, such as the Barcelona Olympics of 1992, cities are reinvigorated, and the facilities that were constructed and updated for the games continue to serve the host country.[17] However, in other cases facilities, such as the large collection of stadiums constructed for the FIFA World Cup in and around Rio de Janeiro.[18] become “white elephants,” useless structures that are costly to maintain and upkeep, and to this day are not utilized and continue to waste public funds for upkeep and …show more content…
One solution is to to attract other large-scale sporting events to the hosting country. Qatar’s Khalifa International Stadium, for example, will be one of the main venues for the IAAF World Championships in Athletics in 2019. And Qatar has said it is determined to bid again to host to the Summer Olympics.[20]
Another solution is include “modular” designs in the infrastructures’ plan so that parts of the venues can be disassembled and scaled down after the main mega-event has taken place. Rio, for instance, has structures that can be removed, rebuilt, and repurposed: Future Arena, the handball venue, will provide the material to build four 500-student primary schools in the city’s Jacarepaguá neighborhood while the Olympics Aquatics Stadium will be disassembled and its components used to erect two community swimming centers; one in Madureira Park and one in the Campo Grande area.
Mayor Eduardo Paes calls it “nomadic architecture”[21] and it is a way to to balance Olympic “legacy” with urban