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13 pages, 289 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Environmental Sustainability as Factor for Mega Sport Event Support—Empirical Evidence Regarding the Olympic Games and the Football World Cup

by Ine Hugaerts, Holger Schunk and Thomas Könecke

World 2023, 4(3), 477-489; https://doi.org/10.3390/world4030030 - 28 Jul 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 4121

Abstract

Environmental sustainability (ES) has generally become an important topic in recent years. In this context, interest in the environmental impact of sport events has also considerably grown. However, not much is known about how people currently perceive ES in mega sport events (MSEs) [...] Read more.

Environmental sustainability (ES) has generally become an important topic in recent years. In this context, interest in the environmental impact of sport events has also considerably grown. However, not much is known about how people currently perceive ES in mega sport events (MSEs) and if this influences their support to stage a MSE in their home country. To shed light on this question, a survey was conducted in Germany, which resulted in a sample of 917 respondents. The data show that about one-third of them think that ES is adequately implemented in the Olympic Games and the Football World Cup. Around half of the respondents state they are in favour of hosting these events in Germany in the future and multinomial logistic regressions reveal that positive and negative perceptions of the ES of the events are important predictors of support and opposition. The same is true for the perception of the overall brand image of the event. The findings have important implications for future bidding processes because they show that the further development of ES in MSEs might have an influence on the support for hosting these events in Germany and potentially other Western democracies. Full article

18 pages, 290 KiB

Open AccessArticle

When Event Social Sustainability Is Tarnished by Scandal: Long-Term Community Perceptions of the 2002 Winter Olympics Bid Scandal and Legacy

by Haylie M. June, Ashley R. Kernan, Rachel M. Sumsion, Michael R. Cope, Scott R. Sanders and Carol Ward

Sustainability 2023, 15(3), 2558; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15032558 - 31 Jan 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2501

Abstract

Due to the increasing number of events around the world, event sustainability is an area of research relevant across disciplines. Research has found that event sustainability encompasses economic, environmental, and social legacies. However, events may face unforeseen challenges, sometimes even major scandals. How [...] Read more.

Due to the increasing number of events around the world, event sustainability is an area of research relevant across disciplines. Research has found that event sustainability encompasses economic, environmental, and social legacies. However, events may face unforeseen challenges, sometimes even major scandals. How do these scandals impact residents and the sustainable legacy of the mega-event? As a historical case study, we explore social aspects of event sustainability in the wake of the 2002 Winter Olympics bid scandal, where it was reported that the Salt Lake Olympic Committee (SLOC) bribed members of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to secure votes in favor of Salt Lake City hosting the 2002 Winter Olympic. Despite the bribery scandal, the Salt Lake City Games were considered a success by the media and members of the SLOC and IOC. Specifically, the present study investigates local residents’ perceptions of the scandal before, during, and after the Olympics using data gathered from 1999 to 2018 in Heber Valley, Utah. We find that time is a significant predictor of residents’ feelings toward the scandal. Further, feelings towards the Olympics, community desirability, race, and biological sex are also significant predictors. These findings lead us to conclude that the effects of the scandal on the Olympics’ sustainable legacy fade away over time. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainability of Festivals and Events)

20 pages, 1427 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Politicians’ Personal Legacies from Olympic Bids and Referenda—An Analysis of Individual Risks and Opportunities

by Thomas Könecke and Michiel de Nooij

J. Risk Financial Manag. 2022, 15(12), 594; https://doi.org/10.3390/jrfm15120594 - 11 Dec 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2599

Abstract

The popularity of staging Olympic Games has dropped in democratic countries as a series of failed referenda and withdrawn bids as well as protests against mega sport events have shown in recent years. Nevertheless, the there still are democratically elected office-holders willing to [...] Read more.

The popularity of staging Olympic Games has dropped in democratic countries as a series of failed referenda and withdrawn bids as well as protests against mega sport events have shown in recent years. Nevertheless, the there still are democratically elected office-holders willing to become involved in an Olympic bid despite the high probability of public opposition and the threat of an almost unwinnable referendum. This conceptual study analyses the individual risk management that these politicians have to concern themselves with because of their involvement in Olympic bids and referenda. It does so by looking at possible ‘personal legacies’ the politicians can obtain. It is interesting to note that although the size of such legacies will vary, they can result irrespective of the outcome of a bid or a referendum and can have positive, negative, or neutral effects for the politician(s) in question. As will be shown, personal legacies can also be obtained by opponents of Olympic bidding ambitions, which is not the only finding that is problematic particularly for the IOC and National Olympic Committees interested in hosting Olympic Games or other sport events. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Risk in Sports and Challenges for Sports Organizations)

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23 pages, 315 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Implementing a Sustainability Legacy Strategy: A Case Study of PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games

by Hyung-Min Kim and Jonathan Grix

Sustainability 2021, 13(9), 5141; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13095141 - 5 May 2021

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 10834

Abstract

Given the growing need for hosts of sports mega-events to provide concrete plans for a sustainable sports mega-event at the bidding stage, it is perhaps surprising that there has not been more research on the actual implementation of the legacy plan in terms [...] Read more.

Given the growing need for hosts of sports mega-events to provide concrete plans for a sustainable sports mega-event at the bidding stage, it is perhaps surprising that there has not been more research on the actual implementation of the legacy plan in terms of sustainability. The main aim of this paper is to do just that: to analyse an empirical example of the implementation of the sustainability legacy plan for the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games. Through an empirical analysis, the research methods used to collect the data are document analysis and semi-structured interviews with stakeholder sampling (16 documents and 10 interviewees). The paper uncovers the difficulties the PyeongChang Games encountered in achieving the sustainable legacy planned in the bid files through an evaluation of the implementation of PyeongChang’s legacy strategy in the context of South Korea. Part of the findings reveal that Gangwon Province and South Korea achieved their strategic goals set out in advance of the PyeongChang Olympics as an effective tool for promoting regional development. One of the main obstacles to the sustainability of the PyeongChang Olympics was the lack of a clear plan for the post-Games use of Olympics venues and conflicts of interest among stakeholders of the PyeongChang Winter Games. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Socio-Economic and Environmental Impacts of Sports Facility Development and Sports Event Management)

21 pages, 1187 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Does the Olympic Agenda 2020 Have the Power to Create a New Olympic Heritage? An Analysis for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games Bid

by Martin Schnitzer and Lukas Haizinger

Sustainability 2019, 11(2), 442; https://doi.org/10.3390/su11020442 - 16 Jan 2019

Cited by 43 | Viewed by 11425

Abstract

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) lacks candidates willing to host the Olympic Games (OG) and has reacted to this situation by introducing the Olympic Agenda 2020 (OA)—a reform process making the OG more attractive for potential hosts. This study analyzes whether the OA [...] Read more.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) lacks candidates willing to host the Olympic Games (OG) and has reacted to this situation by introducing the Olympic Agenda 2020 (OA)—a reform process making the OG more attractive for potential hosts. This study analyzes whether the OA plays a crucial role for the future of the OG. We, therefore, examined the official IOC documents and feasibility studies of the 2026 Winter Olympic Games (WOG) bidders and conducted qualitative interviews with experts in the field (n = 15). The results reveal that the 2026 WOG hosts plan to reduce the budgets for the organization and the infrastructure costs in the host regions. As a consequence, the number and nature of the sites and venues as well as the distances between them will increase. This means that the future Olympic heritage (OH) may lay less in iconic buildings but rather focus on the attempt to fulfil the city’s long-term strategies. Our analyses extend the literature by: (1) analysing the OA in view of future OG, (2) comparing experiences from past OG with those of current bidders, (3) integrating expert knowledge thanks to qualitative interviews and, finally, (4) considering new heritage concepts. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Heritage Management)

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16 pages, 206 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Critical Analysis of Britain’s Living, Dead and Zombie Multiculturalism: From 7/7 to the London 2012 Olympic Games

by Chris Allen

Soc. Sci. 2015, 4(1), 18-33; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci4010018 - 24 Dec 2014

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 6437

Abstract

A day after the London 2012 Bid Committee succeeded in bringing the Olympic Games to Britain using the slogan “the world in one city”, a series of coordinated suicide bomb attacks occurred across London (7/7). In one day, Britain’s somewhat beleaguered multiculturalism went [...] Read more.

A day after the London 2012 Bid Committee succeeded in bringing the Olympic Games to Britain using the slogan “the world in one city”, a series of coordinated suicide bomb attacks occurred across London (7/7). In one day, Britain’s somewhat beleaguered multiculturalism went from prompting national celebrations to being decried as “dead” by politicians and commentators alike. Against a backdrop of the Committee’s success in July 2005 through to the end of the Games themselves in August 2012, this article analyses the social and political discourses and debates that ensued in relation to Britain’s multiculturalism. Exploring the metamorphosis of these discourses—using the analogous language of being alive, dead and zombie—this article reflects on the impact and legacy of the London Games on future understandings of multiculturalism. In doing so, this article argues that the everyday lived variety of multiculturalism will always be distinct and different from the political discourses appropriated—or rejected—by political actors. Full article

15 pages, 529 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Between Discourse and Reality: The Un-Sustainability of Mega-Event Planning

by Christopher Gaffney

Sustainability 2013, 5(9), 3926-3940; https://doi.org/10.3390/su5093926 - 16 Sep 2013

Cited by 105 | Viewed by 21409

Abstract

The zero-sum nature of mega-event hosting encourages cities to escalate investment with an eye towards convincing event rights holders that a positive outcome will result. The discursive frameworks of “legacy” and “sustainability”, the global competition to attract events and the compressed event horizon [...] Read more.

The zero-sum nature of mega-event hosting encourages cities to escalate investment with an eye towards convincing event rights holders that a positive outcome will result. The discursive frameworks of “legacy” and “sustainability”, the global competition to attract events and the compressed event horizon make for mega-event preparation regimes that may seriously compromise long-term urban planning agendas in mega-event hosts. By examining the sustainable urban planning literature, the discursive frameworks of sustainability in the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the discursive framing of the Rio 2016 bid, this paper will examine the Olympic Golf project being implemented in Rio de Janeiro. Through this case study the paper argues that unless mega-event rights holders change their candidacy and selection processes, these events will inevitably be detrimental to their hosts. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Mega-Events)

17 pages, 601 KiB

Open AccessArticle

“Bring It under the Legacy Umbrella”: Olympic Host Cities and the Changing Fortunes of the Sustainability Agenda

by John R. Gold and Margaret M. Gold

Sustainability 2013, 5(8), 3526-3542; https://doi.org/10.3390/su5083526 - 16 Aug 2013

Cited by 50 | Viewed by 17040

Abstract

A concern for enduring urban outcomes lies at the heart of the Olympic Games in a way that no other sporting or cultural event can match, but each age has recast the ways in which such outcomes have been framed in light of [...] Read more.

A concern for enduring urban outcomes lies at the heart of the Olympic Games in a way that no other sporting or cultural event can match, but each age has recast the ways in which such outcomes have been framed in light of its own values and needs. Seen against that background, this paper examines the evolution of the Olympic movement’s sustainability agenda. It first considers how the environment emerged as an issue within the Winter Games through concerns over environmental protection, discusses measures introduced to embed sustainability into official Olympic practice, and explores the evolution of the dynamic relationship between sustainability and the overlapping but, to some extent, rival concept of “legacy”. The latter part of the paper illustrates these ideas with regard to the London 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games. It analyses the “One Planet Games” concept, how this was developed for the bid, and how it was subsequently put into practice, commenting particularly on the carbon footprint, creation of the Olympic Park (as sustainable legacy) and the promotion of sustainable living. The conclusion comments on the continuing challenges encountered in implementing sustainability plans and addressing long-term legacy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Mega-Events)

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