Monday, August 4, 2008

The IOC - a for-profit business?

You've probably all heard about China's limiting of internet access for journalists covering the Olympics. This article argues that it's unrealistic to expect the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to fight or win such a dispute with the Chinese government. The IOC's financial stakes are too high to make any threat to withdraw credible.

The IOC is now a non-profit organization. Among other things, it is supposed "to place sport at the service of the harmonious development of man, with a view to promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity." The article argues that the IOC should instead become a regular business: then its actions would be in line with people's expectations. (Disclaimer: the author is well and personally known to me...and related...)

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