En tu idioma/ In your own language

Eduardo del Buey
Foto: Ap
La Jornada Maya

Martes 9 de agosto, 2016

Twenty-four years ago I served as the Canadian Government´s Liaison Officer and Spokesperson at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, Spain.

I had just read The Lords of the Rings (Viv Simpson & Andrew Jennings), a scathing critique of the tremendous levels of corruption and influence peddling in the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and looked at the Games with some trepidation.

Two years earlier, I had attended the meeting of the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) in Barcelona and witnessed first-hand the lavish lifestyle and sense of entitlement enjoyed by Olympic Committee members, and their obsession with perks and luxury – all paid for by sponsors who benefit greatly from the Games and governments that spend billions of dollars on infrastructure every four years to host them.

The Olympic movement is a giant business, fleecing host governments to stage its games. It provides a major branding opportunity for commercial firms from Coca Cola to Adidas, McDonalds and Visa. Business is at its very core, and scandals continue to plague the movement – from the those centered on the buying the votes of IOC members to select venues for the Games to the doping challenges that affect the Games to this very day.

Despite these conditions, the Barcelona Olympics and Paralympics turned out to be one of the most exciting and rewarding experiences of my diplomatic career. The ambiance was electric, with athletes giving their all for their countries and their sports.

Thus I always watch Olympic Games with mixed emotions – a love for sports and admiration for the athletes coupled with disdain for the organization that continues to manage the games in an opaque way.

Over the years, the Olympics have developed into expensive showcases where local populations go into debt for many years for the privilege of hosting them. Montreal only recently paid off its heavy debt for hosting of the 1976 Games. The result was thirty years of higher taxes for Montrealers, and an Olympic Stadium whose construction was plagued with corruption and is currently falling to pieces.

Indeed, recent games have seen incredibly expensive inaugurations, throwing money into an effort that does not directly benefit sports, and that might be better spent in developing training programs and opportunities for disenfranchised youth for whom sports can be an escape from the violence and crime that plague our inner cities. If the Games don’t change their focus, more and more governments will avoid bidding to host them.

The opening ceremony in Rio de Janeiro last week was a small but hopeful start.

More modest than recent inaugural ceremonies, it reflected the difficult political and economic situation Brazil faces, as well as the entrenched poverty that exists just blocks away from the sporting venues. It was elegant, told a good story, reflected the artistic talent and interesting history of this hemispheric giant, and grabbed the audiences’ attention. It was far shorter than recent Olympic productions, allowing for time to showcase the athletes.

The real messages come from the participants themselves. Their radiant smiles underscored their excitement to finally put years of preparation to the ultimate test.

The presence of a team of refugees participating under the Olympic flag demonstrated a quantum leap in international sports. Refugees, the forgotten millions who suffer around the world, have finally found a voice and place in the global sporting arena. Their stories are worth hearing since they show how sports can turn adversity into achievement and despair into hope.

The Games have to become sustainable. Fewer governments will be willing to host them if costs continue to skyrocket and hosting the games continue to provoke protests like those ongoing in Brazil today.

Rio’s inauguration was a small first step. Let’s hope this trend towards more modest games continues lest the Olympics become a modern version of Rome’s bread and circuses – spectacular but unsustainable.

[b]Mérida, Yucatán[/b]
[b][email protected][/b]