Choosing the Host City

Looking at the political, environmental and social state of Sochi mere days before the start of the Games, I was very skeptical of the choice of the location selected for the 2014 Winter Olympics. There was a substantial amount of construction that was yet to be completed, the accommodations were not ready for all the visitors, there were terrorist threats and many other problems that I will elaborate upon in the following posts. In other words, the hosts didn't seem to be ready!

President Vladimir Putin

Through the Olympic Games, President Vladimir Putin (president of Russia), had the objective to make Sochi an international tourist attraction (1). He wanted to establish better infrastructure, create a world renowned ski resort, adopt a new and improved reputation for Russia and be known worldwide as an enlightened country. We’ll see if he achieves his goal in the next couple decades and if the Sochi legacy will withstand the test of time. For example, there have been Olympic sites like Beijing (China 2008) and Athens (Greece 2004) that have had minimal use since the Olympics and that have basically been abandoned (2). Hence, I question whether the money, energy and time could have been used to better ends?

Seeing as Sochi was having difficulty getting ready for the Olympics, I also began questioning how the host city is chosen. I discovered that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decides which city hosts the Olympics seven years in advance of the Games. The process begins with the submission of proposals by prospective cities/countries and it is decided by the voting of the Olympic committee members. Once the interested cities submit their proposal, they must answer questions regarding their intentions for hosting the Olympics, and how they would provide world-class venues and accommodations for the athletes, the dignitaries, the visitors and the press. The voting process entails a series of ballots and in each ballot, the city with the least votes is eliminated from the list. They then engage in another vote, and so on, until the host city is selected (3). With such an elaborate process, I would think that the most ideal location would ultimately be chosen to host the Olympics. However, many unforeseen events could occur in the intervening years which may jeopardize the success of the Games. Therefore it would be difficult for the IOC to anticipate issues such as political constraints and climate variability when choosing the optimal location. 

The host country must also take into consideration the financial aspects involved in holding the Olympics, and the next post will focus on the costs of the Sochi Games in comparison to previous Olympic venues.

(1) http://www.theverge.com/2014/2/24/5441806/vladimir-putin-won-the-olympics-but-hes-not-smiling

(2) http://www.businessinsider.com/why-sochi-is-by-far-the-most-expensive-olympics-ever-2014-1

(3) http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-process-for-determining-the-location-of-the-olympic-games.htm