Olympic Gigantism and the Multifaceted Concept of Sports Venues (original) (raw)

Cultural and Tourism Innovation in the Digital Era

The immense growth in popularity and the universal acceptance of the Olympic ideals has led, amongst others, to an increase in all aspects of Games participation, organization, complexity and cost. Increases in the number of sports, disciplines and events, as well as competing nations, athletes and attending media, have led to a quadrupling in numbers and requirements in all Games-related areas. These increases have affected not only the number of technical officials, workforce, security, volunteers, accommodation and transport, but most notably the number and size of venues and their standards. Through literature review this paper discusses the key factors in connection to the increasing scale and scope of the Olympics and outlines the underlying problems, whilst simultaneously shedding light on the diverse and controversial attributes ascribed to sports venues, which impede their post-Games management. JEL Classification L83 • Z20 • Z23 • Z28 1 Introduction According to the initial conception of Baron Pierre de Coubertin the Olympic Games encompassed the romantic notion of a 'panegyris', in the sense of a democratic, intercultural assembly and an all-nations inclusive 'pan-artistic gathering' (Gold and Gold 2013). Over time, according to Gold and Gold (2013) its modern adaptation was that of "a festival based on the twin pillars of sport and culture that was intended to bring people from all around the world together". The immense growth in popularity and the universal acceptance of the Olympic ideals has led, amongst others, to an increase in all aspects of Games participation, organization, complexity and cost. These increases have affected not only the