The podium of shame is not occupied solely by Russia. Other Olympic hosts, both past and future, struggle to keep the promises made in order to win the bid to host the Olympics. For example, China, host of the 2008 Summer Games, promised to eliminate air pollution for good. [12] Brazil, host of the upcoming 2016 Summer Games promised to improve the needs of the poor. China’s serious air pollution problems remain, and while Brazil still has time to achieve its goal, that nation’s violent protests in 2013—caused by the government’s lavish expenditures for sporting events despite rampant poverty—indicate that achieving success is about as likely as the Koch brothers going green. Making sustainability pledges without ardently working to achieve them certainly seems like a core tenet of the Olympic bidding process.
Certainly, the IOC deserves accommodation for adoption of Agenda 21 and creation of the Guide to Sport, Environment, and Sustainable Development. But with no enforcement mechanisms, those steps remain little more than words on paper. If the IOC is truly as dedicated to sustainability as it claims, it must take meaningful steps to realize those goals. The IOC should investigate how host nations intend to implement their sustainability promises instead of accepting those claims at face value. Moreover, if those promises prove unfounded, it should trigger some sort of accountability mechanism. The IOC, at the very least, needs to adopt binding guidelines—as opposed to the voluntary guidelines currently in place—ensuring the sustainability of future Games. Ideally, these guidelines would include some consequential investigatory and enforcement mechanisms to keep the host nations honest.
The necessity of these measures is tantamount. Ample examples exist of previous Olympic venues that, despite the incredible money invested to build them, have fallen into utter disrepair or been abandoned altogether.[13] The Olympics must stand for the best humanity has to offer, not epitomize a materialistic and replaceable culture. The Olympics unite the globe for two weeks every two years, allowing the richest and poorest nations the same chance to bring pride to their people. The opportunity to lead the world into a more sustainable future must not be squandered on empty promises and hollow pledges.
