Can Sport Mega-events Clean a Dirty State Image?
Managed by responsible organizations sporting mega-events can become a true detergent in the fight against the dark spots of repression and human rights violations.
Opinion – The Long History of the Olympic Industry and Totalitarian Regimes
The Olympic ideal of peaceful internationalism has always belonged in the realm of mythology. This ideal is dead and buried beneath the capitalist excesses of the IOC.
Opinion – The Olympic Games as a Reflection of Global Power
The balance of power should not be measured only by military power or economics but also by analyzing mega-events like the Olympics where nations that dominate the podium also dominate the global arena.
Interview – Tomohiko Taniguchi
Tomohiko Taniguchi shares his views on Japan’s global standing, its foreign relations with the EU and its Northeast neighbours, and the impact of ‘Abenomics’ policies.
Commercial(ized) Nationalism on Display at the Olympics
Overseas corporations are taking an increasingly important role in telling Americans exactly who they are, as in the case of several ads broadcast during the Olympics.
The Five Extraordinary Features of the Sochi Winter Olympics
The 22nd Winter Olympics will open in Sochi, Russia. Five extraordinary features – location, cost, history, security and law – will make this event unique.
The Pillars of Qatar’s International Sport Strategy
Qatar has invested in its international brand by hosting major sporting events, developing elite programs and engaging in ‘sport diplomacy’. The result has been a mix of successes and challenges.
Security, Society and the Games
To file the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics away as a success would ignore the ways in which they have revealed evolutions in the practices of security and its impact on contemporary society and politics.
Nationalism, Racism and the Olympic Industry
Racism works hand-in-hand with international rivalries and tensions to generate media firestorms. In this respect, the Olympic industry’s reliance on rhetoric of international peace and friendship has long lacked any credibility.
The Historical Context of the War Against Doping in Sport
Liberal societies must be wary of punishing citizens because they offend other citizens’ aesthetic sensibilities. This is permissible only under exceptional circumstances, and it is dubious that doping in sports qualifies.
