Hosting the Olympic Games Uncertainty, Debates and Controversy

Hosting the Olympic Games: Uncertainty, Debates and Controversy provides a broad and comprehensive analysis of past Olympic and Paralympic events, shedding critical light on the future of the Games with a specific look at the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympics. It draws attention to the debates and paradox that hosting the Games presents for the contemporary city. Employing a range of interdisciplinary theoretical and methodological approaches, individual chapters highlight the various controversies of the Games throughout the bidding process, the event itself and its aftermath. Social Science-based chapters place strong emphasis on the vital importance of sustainable strategy for contemporary host cities. Along with environmental concerns whether atmospheric, microbiological or otherwise, many other requirements, costs and risks involving security and public expenditure among others are explored throughout the book. Including a variety of international and comparative case studies from a range of contributing academics, this will be essential reading for students and researchers in the field of Event studies as well as various disciplines including Tourism, Heritage studies and Urban and Environmental studies.

List of illustrations. List of contributors. Foreword: building the Olympic legacy for Paris 2024. Acknowledgements.Introduction: Lessons from the past to understand the future of the Games. Marie Delaplace and Pierre-Olaf Schut Part I: Some debates concerning hosting Olympic Games1. Why do cities withdraw from hosting the Olympic Games? Nathalie Fabry and Sylvain Zeghni 2. The battle for public opinion in host cities: The paradox of the Olympics as a troubled brand. Harry H. Hiller 3. The International Olympic Committee’s struggle against growing gigantism of the Olympic Games. Anna Kobierecka and Michal Marcin Kobierecki Part II: Olympic Games as a tool for urban and territorial development?4. The territorial and urban dimensions of the Summer Olympics: A review of publications (1984–2018). José Chaboche and Alain Schoeny 5. Bidding for the Olympic Games: A gearing effect? Pierre-Olaf Schut 6. The role of heritagization in managing uncertainties linked to major events and mega urban projects: Comparing the Olympic Games in London (2012) and Athens (2004). Cécile Doustaly and Geneviève Zembri-Mary 7. The relationship between Olympic Games and tourism: Why such heterogeneity?: Towards a place-based approach. Marie Delaplace Part III: Risk, uncertainty and environmental issues8. Integrating public behaviours into operational responses to crisis situations: A way to improve security of major events? Paul-Henri Richard, Patrick Laclémence, Audrey Morel Senatore and Guillaume Delatour 9. The microbiological quality of the Seine River: Is it compatible with open water Olympic competitions? Françoise Lucas, Bernard de Gouvello, Jean-Marie Mouchel, Laurent Moulin, Pierre Servais and Sébastien Wurtzer 10. Paris 2024 Olympic/Para-Olympic Games and air quality. Gilles Foret, Matthias Beekmann, Olivier Ramalho, Martin Koning, Martial Haeffelin, Etienne de Vanssay, Rachel Nadif, Isabella Annesi-Maesano, Pietro Bernardara and Jean-David Bernard Conclusion: Towards Olympic public–private partnerships. Jean-Loup ChappeletIndex.

Marie Delaplace (marie.delaplace@u-pem.fr) holds a PhD (1994) and a “habilitation à diriger les recherches” (2009) in economics on the emergence of different types of innovations (IT, biopolymers, transportation, services) in different places. Since 2011, she has been professor of planning and regional development in the Lab’Urba research unit at the “École d’urbanisme de Paris” (Paris School of Urban Planning) within Université Paris-Est Marne-la-Vallée (UPEM). Her works have focused on the wide-ranging effects of high-speed rail on local economic development for more than 15 years and on tourism and local economic development for more than 10 years. She is the co-director of the “City, Tourism, Transport and Territories” Group within the Urban Futures LabEx and represents the university president in the French association AsTRES (Association for Tourism Research and Higher Education). In 2017, she co-founded the Observatory for Research on Mega-Events (ORME) at Université Paris-Est (https://www.u-orme.fr/en/). Alone or with other researchers, she has published almost 60 articles in academic journals and 10 book chapters on these issues. Pierre-Olaf Schut (po.schut@u-pem.fr) is a Professor of sports history in the research center “Analyse Comparée des Pouvoirs” (EA 3350) atUniversité Paris-Est Marne-la-Vallée, France. His main research areas are the development of sports and their relationships with tourism and regional planning, especially regarding sports facilities. He also works on the history of Olympism and the legacy of mega-events. He has co-founded ORME, the Observatory for Research on Mega-Events. He is part of the editorial board of the International Journal of the History of Sport and elected in the International Society for the History of Physical Education and Sport council. He recently published in French Espaces et lieux de sport dans l’histoire by EPURE.