Olympic Games: A Simple Definition & Why It Matters?

Ancient Greek athletes created the Olympic Games, which were resurrected in the late 1800s. Officially, only amateur athletes could compete in the Games before the 1970s, but in the 1980s, professional athletes were allowed to compete in several events. At the moment, everyone can participate in the Games, including the best professional basketball and football players.

  

A number of the current Summer Games sports, which can feature competitions in as many as 32 different sports, were part of the ancient Olympic Games. Winter sports received official permission for the Winter Games in 1924. It is now accepted that the Olympic Games are the greatest sporting event in the world

The Olympic History

Originally, the Olympics consisted of a series of contests between Ancient Greek city delegates. The competitions featured fighting and chariot racing in addition to the primary sporting events. 

During this period, the Olympics possessed great religious significance since they coincided with ceremonies honoring the mythological rulers of Olympia, the site of the first Olympic "stadium," Zeus and Pelops. 

The ancient Greeks utilized this period, called the Olympiad, as a means of measuring time because the Olympics were staged every four years.

At the national level, Greeks held their victors in high regard and prize money for winning an event. Poems and statues created in their honor also served to immortalize the winners. Ancient Greek myths and legends, which are still spoken today, record several winners.

In Ancient Greece, the Olympic Games peaked in the fifth and sixth centuries BC. The event came to an end in approximately 400 AD due to the Romans' increasing strength and influence over Ancient Greece.

During the early 1700s and 1800s, there were several small-scale local attempts in France and England to bring the games back. The "International Olympic Charter," which served as the foundation for all Olympic Games, was established in 1890 with the founding of the "International Olympic Association," or IOC.

As a tribute to their birthplace, the Olympic Games were first hosted in Athens in 1896. 241 competitors from 14 countries competed in 43 events during the games. The Greek government and wealthy individual investor George Averoff provided funding for the renovation of the "Penathenaic Stadium," where the games were played.

The modern Olympics as we know them today were born out of another rebirth of the games in 1912. Pierre de Coubertin, who worked tirelessly to increase interest in the Olympics and guarantee that it was an even playing field for athletes to use as a testing ground, is credited for this comeback.

Additionally, he designed the Olympic rings, which have been a defining feature of Olympic emblems ever since. In 1912, Coubertin revealed the new Olympics and logo.

When did the Expense of Holding the Games start to Matter?

The organizing of the Olympic Games was a tolerable burden for the host towns for the majority of the 20th century. In the days before television broadcasting, the festivities were hosted in wealthy nations, either in Europe or the United States, and the hosts had no intention of turning a profit. 

Rather, the games were supported by the public, and because these nations had more developed infrastructure and stronger economies, they were better able to absorb the costs.

Economist Andrew Zimbalist, the author of three books about Olympic economics, claims that the 1970s were a watershed year. The Summer Olympics saw an almost twofold increase in participation from the early 20th century, and in the 1960s, the number of events increased by a third.

However, the 1968 Mexico City Olympics protester killings and the 1972 Munich Olympics terrorist attack by the Palestinian militant group Black September Organization damaged the reputation of the Olympics and increased public mistrust of taking on debt to host the games. 

Denver was the first and only selected host city to turn down the chance to host in 1972 when electors approved a referendum opposing further public funding for the games.

According to a 2024 University of Oxford study, the average cost of hosting has tripled the bid price from 1960. The Summer Olympics in Montreal in 1976 became a symbol of the financial hazards associated with hosting. 

Due in major part to construction delays and cost overruns for a new stadium, the $124 million anticipated cost was billions less than the actual cost, leaving the city's taxpayers saddled with a debt of approximately $1.5 billion that would take nearly three decades to pay off.

Expenses Associated with Hosting the Olympics

The cost of hosting the games is more than that of placing the bid. For instance, London had to pay $14.6 billion to host the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. Taxpayers funded $4.4 billion of that total. 

In 2008, Beijing invested $42 billion in hosting. $15 billion was spent by Athens, Greece, to host the 2004 Olympics. Sydney spent $4.6 billion to host the 2000 Summer Olympics. Of that amount, $11.4 million was paid for by taxpayers. Brazil's Rio de Janeiro paid more than $20 billion to host the 2016 Olympics.

When a city is chosen to host the Olympics, it usually builds new highways, upgrades existing airports, and builds rail systems to handle the massive inflow of visitors. It is necessary to build or renovate at least 40,000 hotel rooms, housing for the athletes in the Olympic Village, and event-specific amenities. The total cost of infrastructure might be between $5 and $50 billion.

Advantages of Holding the Olympics in Your City

Infrastructure enhancements that benefit cities hosting the Olympics also create temporary jobs that benefit the cities long-term. To accommodate tourists, Rio de Janeiro, for instance, built 15,000 extra hotel rooms. For the 2014 Olympics, Sochi, Russia, spent over $44.3 billion building non-sports infrastructure.

Beijing invested almost $11.25 billion in environmental restoration and over $22.5 billion in building highways, airports, subways, and rail lines. A host city also receives additional cash because thousands of sponsors, media, athletes, and spectators usually visit for six months leading up to and following the Olympics.

Cons of Holding the Olympics in Your City

Not all Olympic host cities see the expected increase in employment that is anticipated. When Salt Lake City held the 2002 Olympics, for instance, the city only added 7,000 new jobs—roughly 10% fewer than what the organizers had predicted the games would deliver. 

Furthermore, the majority of jobs went to those who were already employed, therefore the unemployment rate did not necessarily change much. Moreover, a large portion of the revenues made by restaurants, lodging facilities, and construction industries go to foreign corporations rather than the regional economy.

Often, just a percentage of costs are paid for by gaming revenue. For instance, the London 2012 Summer Olympics generated $5.2 billion in revenue, but the city expended $18 billion on them. 2010 saw Vancouver, Canada, earn $2.8 billion after the Winter Games cost $7.6 billion. For the 2008 Summer Olympics. 

Beijing brought in $3.6 billion and spent over $40 billion. Los Angeles is the only host city that has made money from the games as of 2016, primarily because the necessary infrastructure was already in place

Debt Associated with Building Olympic Facilities

A large number of the arenas built for the Olympics remain ongoing projects. Instead, they stand for continuous costs. For instance, the stadium in Sydney requires $30 million in maintenance every year. Similarly, the yearly maintenance of Beijing's Bird's Nest arena comes to $10 million.

Furthermore, a city that borrows money to fund construction may still owe money long after the games are done. Montreal didn't completely settle its debt from the 1976 games until 2006.

Six This remains true even if the facilities themselves are closed. For example, the majority of the buildings built for the 2004 Olympics in Athens still need to be occupied and contributed to Greece's economic problem.

Conclusion

Cities that host the Olympics usually suffer from serious economic difficulties. It might be best not to host the Olympics unless a city already has the infrastructure to handle the surplus crowds expected to arrive.