Olympics

Olympics

The Olympic Games occur every four years where thousands of athletes and countries come together to embrace the Olympic spirit through competition. It is not an easy task though. Chalkley and Essex go on to describe and show the evolution of the Olympics as a “hallmark”, mega event with the ability to bring in money and sustainable urban development. It is an expensive event where cities don’t usually have the infrastructure needed. The International Olympic Committee and the host city usually fund the Games but it seen in some past Games there has been help from the private sector. The Olympic Games brings a certain prestige to the host city and even just the bid brings a positive image to the city. As the article goes on we really see the urban impact of hosting the Olympics in both positive and negative aspects. Each Olympic Games tries to out do the previous. Nowadays we see such a big emphasis on the opening and closing ceremonies. With more sports and athletes being added the host city had to be bigger and better but there is some issues that would have to be addressed. One of these is how to profit from creating additional structures from a one-time use to be sustainable assets to the city. The Olympic Village is an easy turn over to become housing for individuals and families after. The Olympic Games gave host cities the ability re-shape and bring more value to their cities. Host cities created larger highways and airports, more parks, and other urban development projects with hope that the Games will bring them in tangible and intangible value. The intangible value that is created beyond the legacy of the games seems to be the most important. For instance in the Seoul Games, walls were built to hide the underdeveloped, poor areas of the city. The Olympics launched its image and gave it more prestige in the Asian market. In ways the Olympic Games gave the host cities an opportunity to improve their infrastructures like water and power supply. It cannot...

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