# Nobody wants to host the 2022 Winter Olympics **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [May 27, 2014, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387 "2014-05-27T17:34:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2015, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/61 "2015-07-31T17:47:57Z")
I mean the 7,000 pages of demands from the IOC to the hosts. [Touched on here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrKf-fAekds) by John Oliver. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2015, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/62 "2015-07-31T18:37:30Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > Unless the IOC changes its ‘FIFAesque’ bidding process, there will no longer be bids from north america or europe. Under “[Olympic Agenda 2020](http://www.olympic.org/olympic-agenda-2020)”, they are reforming the bidding process. [Here](http://www.olympic.org/documents/olympic_agenda_2020/olympic_agenda_2020-20-20_recommendations-eng.pdf) is a 25-page PDF summary of the recommendations. The document is vague, but I think after the fiasco with the bidding on the 2022 Winter Games, they realized something has to change. It’s gotta hurt that the only bidders left standing were Almaty and Beijing and that natural winter venues like Oslo and Stockholm dropped out. Beijing is trying create a winter sports tradition and industry from scratch. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2015, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/63 "2015-07-31T19:28:18Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > Unless the IOC changes its ‘FIFAesque’ bidding process, there will no longer be bids from north america or europe. And yet here Toronto is seriously considering a bid for 2024. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2015, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/64 "2015-07-31T19:36:35Z")
And after Boston dropped out of the bidding for the 2024 Summer Games, Los Angeles might try for it. They have an advantage in that many venues already exist. (But I would have thought that would have been true in Boston as well.) It’s not a good thing that major American cities like New York or Chicago don’t really try for the Games. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2015, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/65 "2015-07-31T19:48:41Z")
New York and Chicago both were in the running within the last couple of selection cycles. LA, SF, and DC were bidding along with Boston this time. The alleged attraction of the Boston bid was based on low cost from using existing college facilities in a make-do fashion, but what killed it was lack of planning and the IOC’s expectation that local government would cover any overruns, of whatever size (ever hear of the Big Dig? I know you have). The idea of shutting an already-congested city down for several weeks, after years of disruption from construction of a temporary stadium and transit upgrades (ha!), with the whole process being something a few promoters put together in private without working to build grassroots support or even actively discussing their ideas publicly, was the reason for such strong opposition. LA always did seem like the obvious choice anyway, even if it will cost as much to rebuild the Coliseum as it would to build something new. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2015, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/66 "2015-07-31T20:26:15Z")
I would jump for joy if its in LA. The last time I was too young to appreciate it, and having read about how LA ran the games, I’m fairly confident we can do it again. And this time I’ll get to go to some events! A lot of our infrastructure was already in the process of being updated like expanding metro lines, bus lines, and some stadiums. By 2024, if we do get it, it would be completely done and up and running ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2015, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/67 "2015-07-31T20:33:21Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > And yet here Toronto is seriously considering a bid for 2024. So is Reno/Sacramento. I wonder if Beijing is going to build all-new facilities or can they fix up the crumbling facilities that are currently rotting after the Summer Games? ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2015, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/68 "2015-07-31T20:36:06Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > So is Reno/Sacramento. > > I wonder if Beijing is going to build all-new facilities or can they fix up the crumbling facilities that are currently rotting after the Summer Games? I don’t think it would be that hard. The winter games are less intensive. The skiing events require damn little. Build a few indoor arenas for the skating events, revamp the bird nest stadium for the ceremonies and they’re good to go. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2015, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/69 "2015-07-31T20:43:58Z")
My understanding that Beijing doesn’t have snow-covered mountains suitable for ski runs and that they’re going to use snow making equipment to produce it. And just how far from the city are the mountains? ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2015, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/70 "2015-07-31T22:02:33Z")
Whoops, I meant Reno/Sacramento are looking for the 2026 Winter Games. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2015, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/71 "2015-07-31T22:06:29Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > I don’t think it would be that hard. The winter games are less intensive. **The skiing events require damn little.** Build a few indoor arenas for the skating events, revamp the bird nest stadium for the ceremonies and they’re good to go. (Emphasis mine.) They require damn little _assuming you have snow_. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![kurtisokc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bbce88/32.png) [@kurtisokc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kurtisokc)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2015, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/72 "2015-07-31T23:00:19Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > So is Reno/Sacramento. > > I wonder if Beijing is going to build all-new facilities or can they fix up the crumbling facilities that are currently rotting after the Summer Games? The plan is that most of the skating events will, indeed, be held in venues left over from the 2008 Summer Games. And while I don’t personally know how much they have been utilized, I doubt that they have been “rotting.” ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2015, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/73 "2015-08-01T01:57:15Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > The winter games are less intensive. I don’t know about that. The Sochi games were ridiculously expensive. A sliding track for the bobsleigh/luge/skeleton has to cost a small fortune. You need at least two skating facilities to hold figure skating and hockey within the two weeks of the games. Don’t know if the Olympics require a dedicated facility for curling or if they can use a (third) converted skating rink. Speed skating always seems to be held indoors since about Calgary, so that’s a 400-meter track (same size as the summer games track), with all the pipes and cooling to freeze it, and a building to house it. And a couple of ski jumps. There’s a lot of infrastructure for a Winter Olympics, and it’s very specialized so you can’t re-purpose it when the Games are done. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2015, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/74 "2015-08-01T02:38:00Z")
The impression I got was that there was no reason that the Sochi games _needed_ to be that expensive. Billions were lost in corruption. And the Russians also built up Sochi, ostensibly for the Games, but, as I understand it, in the long run as a destination resort. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2015, 8:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/75 "2015-08-01T08:42:23Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > It’s gotta hurt that the only bidders left standing were Almaty and Beijing and that natural winter venues like Oslo and Stockholm dropped out. Beijing is trying create a winter sports tradition and industry from scratch. Almaty, Kazakhstan is surrounded by huge mountains and experiences 30ish high temperatures during the winter. Beijing actually has numerous ski resorts around the city; that said, the winter window is extremely short, I visited there in March one year and the temperatures were well into the 70s the entire week. ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2015, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/76 "2015-08-01T12:06:22Z")
> [@OneCentStamp](#): > > As a denizen of the last US city to host one, I’m actually not surprised. It didn’t help that the 2002 Winter Olympics were so relatively soon after 9/11 (deterring some national and international travel, certainly), but it never ended up being the windfall host cities seem to think it’s going to be. > > **Good Things Utah Got From The Olympics** > > - A viable commuter rail system that’s still running and still great > - Eradication of a few of the more truly bizarre liquor laws (though we’re still one of the most restricted states) > > **Bad Things Utah Got From The Olympics** > > - A huge open air shopping center that’s now half-vacant and moldering along with some other rotting infrastructure (though nothing like what happens to some FIFA World Cup sites) > - Mitt Romney’s rise to prominence So which sporting event is responsible for givlng us the far more odious Barack Hussein Obama and his bankrupt city of Chicago? ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2015, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/77 "2015-08-02T02:12:13Z")
> [@Jim\_s\_Son](#): > > So which sporting event is responsible for givlng us the far more odious Barack Hussein Obama and his bankrupt city of Chicago? Let’s try not to make this into a political discussion/debate. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2015, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/78 "2015-08-07T05:17:05Z")
I wonder why China didn’t try to go with Harbin, a seemingly more suitable city. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2015, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/79 "2015-08-07T12:40:26Z")
One would assume the same sort of internal politics that caused the USA to put forth Atlanta for 1996, despite Atlanta being a genuinely weird choice. What other country has ever proposed to host the Olympic Games in what might be, generously, its tenth-most-important city? It’s entirely possible Beijing was picked solely for the honor of making it the only city to host a Summer and Winter Games. Symbolism and prestige are most important to a dictatorship than they are to a democracy. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2015, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387/80 "2015-08-07T13:38:27Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > One would assume the same sort of internal politics that caused the USA to put forth Atlanta for 1996, despite Atlanta being a genuinely weird choice. What other country has ever proposed to host the Olympic Games in what might be, generously, its tenth-most-important city? Hey, Atlanta is a damn sight more important than Lake Placid (pop. 2500, closer to Montreal than to Boston or Buffalo), and Lake Placid has hosted two now. 😛 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nobody-wants-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics/689387.md?page=5)