Olympic Games Pros And Cons

The Olympic Games is the world’s largest sporting display held during the summer and winter seasons on a four year cycle. The event is held in one city out of the entire world. On average, 10,000 athletes participate in about 300 events in the Summer Games and about 3,000 athletes compete in about 100 events during the Winter Games. The Olympics began in ancient Olympia, Greece from 776 BC through 393 AD. They were celebrated as a religious festival held in the honour of the Greek god, Zeus. It ended due to pagan worship and did not return until 1,503 years later in 1896. Athens, Greece held the first modern Olympic Games after Baron Pierre de Coubertin, a french educator, suggested to bring back the ancient tradition in 1894. This event has …show more content…
The major spending to meet the demands of hosting this major sporting event greatly outweighs the profit made after the event is over. Large investments made for the Olympics may not be used in the future, resulting in overspending and a poor use of resources. It is argued that these infrastructure investments are actually beneficial long term as well as short term like transport improvements can decongest traffic. Many job opportunities are also created and employment rates go up from all of the business opportunities associated with the event as well as construction. This is very beneficial in the sense that it is not just a short term job for men and women that want stable and lasting income. The cities start preparing for the IOC ten years prior to even bidding. Finally, this large of an event attracts thousands of people from all around the world to the host city. This boosts the economy through tourism, sales and recreational activities. Visitor numbers are shown to have grown significantly in countries after they host the Olympic Games as well as “countries hosting the Olympics see a 20% increase in export trade in the years after hosting.”(Hyde,