Beijing generated $3.6 billion and spent more than $40 billion for the Summer Olympics in 2008. As of 2016, Los Angeles is the only host city that realized a profit from the games, mostly because the required infrastructure already existed. Additionally, it is difficult ascertaining exactly which benefits come from hosting the Olympics.

Pauline Hanson and Bob Katter would rather spend money on roads, schools and hospitals than on the Olympics.

Palaszczuk is doing a Whitlam, meaning the crap will hit the fan long after she's gone !
Typical Labor, not considering their legacy, the consequences for later generations !

Olympic Games are outmoded and cost not only the host countries money, but all countries that enable pampered athletes to attend. Now that they have started the stupid bending the knee, they piss me off more than ever. And, let's not forget the blatant cheating of Communist China.

Everyone I've spoken to about it so far, (I'm in Brisbane) say they're going to pack up and leave (They probably wont, well see), though I do have another friend who was looking at property investments in suburbs that would see him financially better off when the games come, but I've not spoken to him since the decision was made.

A lot of people just aren't keen for the roadwork, construction, traffic jams and all the rest that goes along with it.

Plenty of other worthwhile things to spend that money on.

They say it will generate 17 billion.

By my calculator - they're estimating 3.4 million people will come, and spend $5000 each.

- I'm calling total bs on that.

I can't imagine an Australia without sport.
Growing up in Sydney - sport was very much a part of
our lives. It kept us focused. It was as vital as
breathing. And the Olympics was the place where you
saw the best of the best and gave our best - the chance
to show the world what we were made of. Even the poorest
countries take pride in being part of this event. It's
a question of national pride.

Anyway, I'm sure that Brisbane will do well out of the
Games. I certainly will be watching the Opening Ceremony
in Tokyo tonight. The Games are about more than just
sport. It gives people a chance to mix with other cultures
and get to understand that - it is a small world afterall.

cont'd ...

Ken Budden's poem sums things u p rather well:

"Only for those of a special breed
Living a dream, a chance to succeed
Yesterday's hopes and desires coming true
Making your mark with records anew

Proving hard work and the daily grind
Instructing the body, conditioning the mind
Can capture a medal for the whole world to see, with
Glamour and Pride for your country

As you stand aloft and your flag is flown high, there's
Memories forever, and a tear in your eye
Enjoying the moment, the admiring looks,
Securing your name in the history books."

Dear Foxy,

I was a seven year old boy in Lake Placid where they held the 1932 Olympics. My Uncle Harry was in charge of the decorations in the ice for the figure skaters. He ordered aquamarine coloring which was a beautiful translucent green. Instead the suppliers sent him ultramarine which was a muddy green. He had to use the ultramarine since he ran out of time. I met a lot of the athletes as Uncle Harry introduced me to them. There was no Olympic Village. The athletes were not isolated but had to find a place to stay in town and mixed with the people. There were no team sports. The athletes did not use the Olympics as a stepping stone to a career in professional sports. The Stevens brothers who lived in Lake Placid won a bobsled competition and were back in work in their garage next day. There was more concern with the achievements of the individual athletes than the number of medals their country won. As far as I am concerned that was the last worthwhile Olympics.

The next Olympics were in 1936 Nazi Germany. It was a showcase for Nazi glitz and a venue for international rivalry. Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi propaganda minister, invented the Olympic torch. Marty Glickman and Sam Stoller, two Jewish athletes were on the US Olympics team but did not compete, possibly, to avoid embarrassing Hitler.

Marty Glickman - Wikipedia

The Olympics became and still are a cesspool of national rivalry, commercialism and inflated salaries of executives on the various Olympic committees

Dear David F.,

Thank You for sharing your information with me

My experiences of the Olympics is different to
yours.

What I remember about the Olympics were the great
sporting moments - like the Oarsome Foursome,
Kathy Freeman, Ian Thorpe, to name just a few.
And of course the spectacle of the opening ceremonies.
Which never disappointed.

I remember my parents taking the
games very seriously. And I felt and shared
their excitement watching them.

I don't know much about all the politics
you mentioned or the corruption, or the
various vested interests, and so on.

I shall be watching the Tokyo opening ceremony
tonight - and I am sure that as always I will
be cheering for Australia. I sympathize with your
point of view however - I can only go by my own
life experience - limited as it may be.

The Olympic Games should be held in the same place each time, I suggest Greece.

Well Greece has all those Olympic venues falling apart, unused since their Olympics, so after a few hundred million they could be ready to do it again, if they are stupid enough.

The commonwealth games were a disaster on the gold coast, but pollies do like making grand announcements, so I suppose someone will have to waste a fortune every leap year for decades to come. Should be good for hiding the payola for a few years.

The Olympics can be improved. I agree with Is Mise. Rather than have different areas of the world compete to host the Olympics and place a burden on their citizens to support the frivolity let the games stay in Greece. Promote amateurism in the Olympic committees. Rather than Olympic executives getting fat on large salaries ask executives who have proven their worth to volunteer to be on Olympic committees. Eliminate Olympic villages. Have athletes stay with local families promoting friendships with the Greek people. Award medals on an individual basis. A great runner is a great runner regardless of his or her country. Have teams formed just for the Olympics with citizens of different countries playing on the same team. Learn from professional sports where players from different countries play on the same team. Possibly the most outstanding baseball player in the US at this time is Japanese Shohei Ohtani who an excellent pitcher and hitter. Teams can represent regions rather than countries. Eliminate Institutes of Sport which encourage a few elite athletes to perform while many others sink into the role of couch potato. Replace the institutes by organizations which encourage more Australians to participate in sports and create a healthier Australia.

Compete in other areas beside sports. Australia can try to lower infant mortality rates, species extinction rates, inequality between rich and poor and other measures of national well being. Recognise other measures of worth beside athletics. Scientists, teachers and many other fields make greater contributions to our well being than athletes.

david f,
Ditto !

Hanson has, rightly, expressed her "fury" at the. Matildas having an official photograph taken behind an aboriginal flag.

david f. Hitler was embarrassed at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. The 18 Black Americans athletea won 14 medals, including 8 gold. Jesse Owens won 4 of the
gold medals.

I'm writing this while watching the opening ceremony, as the athletes representing each country march into the arena. In the light of the comments here, one thing strikes me. I cannot think of another global event where every small country gets to take the stage in front of the world. Cape Verde, Guyana, Sierra Leone, Djibuti, Georgia, Seychelles, wherever else do we get to see people from these countries and hear about their individual achievements? Like 12 year old Hend Zaza, Syria, the youngest athlete at Tokyo?

Dear Cossomby,

I thought exactly the same thing while watching
the opening ceremony last night.
Well said! And YES - Hitler was embarrassed at
the 1936 Olympics - which knocked his Aryan
theories down the gurgler as Black athletes won
the medals!

The Olympic Games, with all its groupies and mental masturbators, are redolent of Ancient Rome with its bread and circuses that Titus, I think it was, introduced to keep the masses under control. The Romans at least had to get off their arses to go and watch. Now, the brain-dead plebeians sit in front of TVs to watch others entertaining them and blocking out real life, while their civilisation goes down the toilet just like the Roman Empire did.

The Greek games which today we call the Olympics
depended for their entertainment value primarily on
rivalry among athletes, while the Roman games
(gladiatorial) were often described by the staging of
battles fought to the death and involved large numbers
of human beings and also beasts.

The following is relevant:

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/other/after-tokyo-we-should-bring-the-olympic-charade-to-an-end/ar-AAMvCZv?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531

"The empty seats in the stadiums of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics are a blessing in disguise, for the sporting spectacle, no matter how good, will not be able to dispel the fact that this super-spreader event is being held in the midst of an unprecedented public health crisis and against the wishes of the vast majority of the Japanese public. In so doing, the International Olympic Committee – which earnestly believes itself to be the leader of a global social movement – has been revealed as no more than the travelling circus of the global sports industry, ready to make sure the broadcasters get what they need come what may."

I'm a bit more positive about these Olympics.
Both the IOC and the Japanese government
have developed very strict protocols for the Games.
This was obvious from the Opening Ceremony - and indeed
this could result in a "safe and secure" event as the
Japanese government has promised.

According to the web - athletes will be segregated from
the general population and all must comply with strict
rules on testing, transport, and contact with other people
to keep the Olympics safe.

Athletes will live in a "bubble"at the Olympic Village and
will be rushed out of the country within 2 days of their
event.

The IOC is banning overseas fans from the Games and Japanese
fans may also be kept away from what organizers promised will
be a sanitized "bubble" to minimize contagion risk.

If all this takes place the Tokyo Olympics could not only
be a great success for the Japanese government and the
IOC - but also for the global community yearning for an
optimistic post COVID future. We can only hope.

The Japanese people have long shown themselves to be
brilliant and meticulous organizers. The Tokyo Olympics
could well turn out to be a great success. I watched our
Gold Medal winner speaking on TV - she seemed to be happy
to be there. As did the other athletes interviewed.

Dear Foxy,

You wrote:

"According to the web - athletes will be segregated from
the general population and all must comply with strict
rules on testing, transport, and contact with other people
to keep the Olympics safe.

Athletes will live in a "bubble"at the Olympic Village and
will be rushed out of the country within 2 days of their
event."

One problem with the Olympics is that the athletes are in a bubble and do not have contact with the general population. If I went to Japan I would want to have contact with Japanese. If athletes are going to be in a bubble separate from the country they are visiting why not just record their performances on video in their home country and save the trouble and expense of travel?

Dear David F.,

That would be like taking a shower with your
raincoat on. Not the same thing.
The Olympics is about the rivalry and competition
amongst the world's top athletes. A video just wouldn't
crack it. Besides Japan promised the Games as "safe and
secure" event - and we can only congratulate them for
doing their best to keep it so.

cont'd ...

Dear David F.,

Let's also not forget that the Japanese are participating
in these Games and all the athletes will be competing
against them and travel from the village to various
sporting venues will also allow them to mix and see the Japanese
environment. They will mix with other cultures as well.
Which is better than staying in their home country under
lockdown conditions.

Davidf: I have been exercising my imagination but I can't quite work out how athletes could compete in some sports by video: relay swimming or running? Tennis? Beach volleyball? And, especially, synchronised swimming.

I loved the opening ceremony, and I've watched more events that I would otherwise have done, not being a great sport follower. It is cheering to see some positive, communal activity happening, and the athletes at least getting a chance to live their dreams. I don't begrudge them that - it's an optimist hope that things will imrove

Davidf: I have been exercising my imagination but I can't quite work out how athletes could compete in some sports by video: relay swimming or running? Tennis? Beach volleyball? And, especially, synchronised swimming?

I loved the opening ceremony, and I've watched more events that I would otherwise have done, not being a great sport follower. It is cheering to see some positive, communal activity happening, and the athletes at least getting a chance to live their dreams. I don't begrudge them that - it's an optimist hope that things will improve for the rest of us.

I have been overcome with the excitement of the OLYMPICS particularly the Aussie's Stella performances in the pool. Did anyone catch the mega swim by Freddie Leadweight in the 125 metre dog paddle.

The final moments of Freddie's hurchulain effort! Unbiased commentator;

50 to go! Its neck and neck, OUR Freddie's lifting, its stroke for stroke, Freddie, from what's his name, Freddie, YES ITS FREDDIE! YES Freddie's has done it for AUSTRALIA! Its BRONZE for Australia! Leadwaight third, the legless non swimmer clown fourth, some turkey from god knows where next, sinks to the bottom. YES AUSTRALIA HAS WON BRONZE!

If you missed any of action, here's the highlights;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GnBLV5xcdY&ab_channel=Sportsbet.com.au

Dear Cossomby,

We'll just have to leave those sports out. I am resigned to the fact that the 1932 Olympics are not coming back and will hope others can enjoy the glitz, commercialism and unhealthy emphasis on national rivalry of the current Olympics. I can't.

Great to see Australia's Dave Donger take out the GOLD in the Marathon Pogo Sticking competition! That one legged bloke from Mongolia really served it up to Dave, but like the true champion he is Dave came through for AUSTRALIA! I expect a ticker tape parade, a knighthood and $1 million for Dave on his return from a grateful Aussie public!

Tune in tonight, the dwarf tossing and jelly wrestling should see more GOLD for AUSTRALIA!

YOU BEAUTY!

The athletes who have the skills and the strength that the spectacles depend on get little or nothing while the Olympic Committees get fat salaries from profiting on the skills and strength of the athletes. In a capitalist society the workers get paid. In the Olympic society only the bosses get paid. Very unfair.

Olympic athletes are not motivated by money and
compete because they're passionate about the sport.
However, having said that - I agree with David F.,
that the Australian Olympic Committee should do
something about presenting the facts to our PM on
having the government support our athletes. It seems
unfair that their families currently are the ones
whose money goes into supporting our athletes,
many of whom are on the bread-line. I believe that
Australia's athletes are one of the lowest supported
athletes in the world. And this needs to change.