A Preliminary Account From an Organizational and Economic Perspective
Piervincenzo Bondonio and Nadia Campaniello
Citius, Altius, Fortius! To what extent does the motto of the Olympics relate to Torino 2006? Has the XXth edition of the Olympic Winter Games (OWG) continued the positive trend whereby each edition, with only a few exceptions, surpasses the one before? In which areas have there been improvements, if any? To what extent have the targets set by the bid promoters and the organizers been achieved, or missed? Finally, on what foundations and from which perspectives have Turin and its surrounding Olympic valleys managed to plan, and how are they preparing to make the most of the heritage of the Games, which is now the main reason that drives a city (and a country) to bear the expensive challenge of their organization? — In this essay, primarily from an economic point of view, we will attempt to respond to these questions, in the knowledge that more complete answers will come at a later stage.
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What Kind of Olympic Winter Games Were Those of Torino 2006?
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Organizational Aspects and Their Perceived Qualities
et us start with some general information (Table 1), which compares Torino 2006 to the seven previous editions of the OWG.1 As we can see, many statistics for Torino 2006 show an increase compared to previous editions: the number of events, the number of national Olympic teams, the number of athletes, and the number of media operators all increased compared to the previous Games, and more than doubled compared to Lake Placid in 1980.2 The increase in media coverage of the Turin Games was even greater; more than 200 countries were represented, guaranteeing coverage rivalling that of the more recent editions of the Summer Olympics. Indeed, it was more than four times greater than the coverage of the Games in Lake Placid 1980. Unchanged, however, are the duration (16