Atlanta would no sooner lay claim as hosting the most commercialised Olympic Games in history. So commercialised in fact, that the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games were billed the "Coca-Cola Olympics".
However, Olympic commercialism remains problematic. While positively promoting the Olympic Movement, the highly commercial nature of the modern Olympics has created such high economic standards that hosting the event has become reserved exclusively for wealthy nations.
The existence of commercialism has seen the emergence of yet another problem. Reports of corruption within the ranks of the Olympic Movement and competing host cities frequently surface as the economic value of hosting the Olympic Games continues to soar.
Running along side the Olympic Torch have been highly publicised private agendas. The increasing commercial value of hosting the Olympics has been met by media reports of corruption and scandal from within the ranks of the Olympic Movement. The Olympic acronyms- SOCOG, IOC, USOC, and AOC- have become synonymous with such negative publicity. The exchange of gifts, overseas holidays, job offers and scholarships, and most recently evidence of IOC nepotism, highlights the increasing businesslike nature of hosting the Olympic Games. Even free heart surgery was reportedly offered to IOC members in exchange for favourable consideration of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic bid.
Although originally conceived of as being an inexpensive event, the games have become a colossal venture. It is impossible for the games to take place in any particular country, unless the whole state is involved. The games, which were originally designed to be a uniting force through the exchange of knowledge and through mutual respect, as well as to favour peace, have led to a sort of competition between the nations, which have been termed as the Olympic war. Right now, the International Olympic Association is in the eye of a storm over last year’s scandal on vote buying for the 2000 winter Olympics. It has to be accepted that the modern Olympics have become very expensive and over-commercialised.
Modern Olympic Games are not what Pierre de Coubertin intended them to be. They will never again be simply an occasion for athletes to compete in friendly rivalry, for spectators to admire extraordinary physical performances, and for everyone involved to feel himself a part of the family of man.
The trials and tribulations that the Olympic Movement was subjected to at every turn form a fascinating study that underscores the essence of sport and the spirit of governing it. We cannot label them simply as occasions of religious fanaticism, ideological display, nationalism, commercialism, racism, etc. Indisputably, the games are a forum for conveying to the universe the message of love and peace. After every four years, as the Olympics approach, or more tragically, disappoint our ideals, they provide us with a dramatic indication of who we are. Perhaps that, is the best argument for their continuation.
