How come so many cities cream their pants in an effort to get the Olympics into their city? Do the tax payers of those cities reap any kind of rewards? I don’t buy the prestige arguement because in a couple of years who cares? The Olympics tend to be held in big cities to begin with. Los Angeles, Moscow, and Atlanta certainly weren’t put on the map by the Olympic games.
So what says you? Are the Olympics really worth it to any city? If so, why?
Marc
Tourism. A crapload of people pour into whatever city is hosting the Olympics, and they spend, spend, spend. Basically, the Olympics is sort of a Vons Club special on a global scale.
SPOOFE, dear, not everyone will get the Vons reference - they’re regional.
Esprix
Does it equal the amount of money it cost to host the Olympics though?
Marc
I can only assume it does. I’d like to think that, even today, cities are willing to lose a little cash simply for the prestige and honor of hosting the Olympics, but the cynic in me says “Nosirree!”
Of course, this is only an assumption, so take it with a big ol’ grain of salt.
Sydney will be paying the cost of hosting the Olympics for many years to come - the infrastructure is incredibly expensive to build and some facilities have very limited potential for use after The Games.
Then again, a lot of the infrastructure built up in LA for the Olympics has benefitted the economy and is still providing a rather improved income rate for many businesses.