Background to Countries Eligible for Olympics, IOCs and NOCs

The IOC (International Olympic Committee) is the main Olympic organiser. they are the group at the head of the Olympics. There website is - http://www.olympic.org/uk/index_uk.asp

The NOC (National Olympics Committee) is the subsection of the international one. it is based in each country eligible to participate. The Irish NOC website is - http://www.olympicsport.ie/Content.aspx?pageid=60

Over 200 countries attended and participated in the Sydney 2002 Olympics even the there is only 192 countries in the world. How is this possible?? This is because the IOC (International Olympic Committee) also recognises independent territories, commonwealths, protectorates and geographical areas. Of the total of 192 countries only three do not have a NOC (National Olympic Committee). These are the Kiribati, Marshall Islands and The Vatican City. That means these countries were not permitted to take party in the Sydney Olympics. This leaves 189 with NOCs. When you add the 12 territories, protectorates and commonwealths (American Samoa (U.S.), Aruba (Netherlands), Bermuda (U.K.), British Virgin Islands (U.K.), Cayman Islands (U.K.), Cook Islands (New Zealand), Guam (U.S.), Hong Kong (China), Netherlands Antilles (Netherlands), Palestine, Porto Rico (U.S.), and the Virgin Islands (U.S.)) who have NOCs to that and can then participate in The Games you get 201 eligible to participate. Currently Afghanistan is not eligible to participated in the Olympics due to Lack of Control Afghanistan's NOC has on what athletes are sent to the Olympics. This is because the IOC believes that the Taliban are in control of those things.

Graph taken from http://www.argmax.com/mt_blog/archive/olympicsgdp.gif

This graph shows the change in GDP (gross domestic product) before and after Sydney hosted the Olympics in 2002. It can clearly be seen that the country took a step drop in GDP the year directly following when sydney held the Olympic Games. This would be a good indicator that the hosting of the Olympics was bad for the Australian Economy in the short term.

How the Olympics Effects A Hosts' Economy

Major sports events such as the Olympics are often seen as a potential source of economic regeneration. Yet, they can also effect the economy negatively. These are some of the economic benefits and potential costs of major sporting events, like the Olympic Games, and how they may effect a countries economy.

Benefits of Hosting The Olympics

1. Encourages Investment in Facilities and Infrastructure.
Major sporting events usually require upgrades to transport and communication links. This investment leaves a lasting legacy for the whole economy. Better transport links reduce traffic and helps to improve efficiency for local business.


2. Influx of Foreign Visitors.
A major sporting event like the Olympics can attract tens of thousands of people for the duration of the games. These foreign tourists bring a boost and lift to the local economy. In particular the local tourist trade, shops and hotels will benefit from the surge and significant rise in visitor numbers and people spending money. However, it is worth noting that these visitor numbers tend to be temporary and the visitors leave as soon as the games are over. The major sporting event only lasts for a few weeks; potentially there could be many empty hotel beds after the games and on into the future. Also people will argue that a major sporting event can potentially lead to a long term growth in visitor and visitor numbers. For example China hopes that after the Beijing Olympics, that were in 2008, people will think of China more as a possible tourist destination. Barcelona saw higher visitor numbers continue after the Barcelona Olympics in 1992
3. Job Creation.
Typically, major sporting events require investment in building facilities for athletes and Hotels and tourist facilities for visiting people. This creates jobs for the local economy for up to 4 years before the games. It is hoped that the London Olympics will help regenerate and build up the East end of London.

4. Higher Economic Growth.
It is estimated that hosting the Olympic Games leads to a boost in economic growth due to the higher investment and foreign visitors. This leads to higher revenues for the host’s government.

Costs of Hosting the Olympics

1. Expenses of Hosting
The cost of hosting a major sporting event has increased a lot in recent times. It includes all the investment and also the heightened security and the extravagant ceremonies which are held. It is hard to meet these costs through sponsorship of events and ticket sales. Therefore, it can lead to higher taxes for the local population of the country.

2. Will the infrastructure be used in the future?
The Olympics requires a lot of investment, which may not necessarily be used in the future. This means it will also not generate cash from people in the country using it.

3. Disruption during the event
It is feared that during the Olympics there will be a disruption to some local businesses not directly linked with the games. For example increased security features make it more difficult to continue normal business in some cases.

Evaluation

It depends how much investment and money is required in the first place to get the hgost up to standards. e.g. do all stadiums need to be built
Can Building contractors keep to first off cost estimates drawn up (e.g. New Wembley was much more expensive than first predicted)
Some sectors of the Economy benefit much more where as some will suffer greatly.