Topic: Whether Boston should host the 2024 Olympics
My Position
Hosting the Olympics Games is more than simply demonstrating a passion for sports; it has a profound social and economic impact to the host city and nation. In my view, the benefits will outweigh the challenges in hosting the 2024 Boston Olympics. By standing out and being chosen by United States Olympic Committee (USOC) as the candidate city, Boston has made a significant step toward the greatest honor to transcend peace, prosperity, and humanity through this event.
Memorandum
Date: Mar 11, 2015
To: United States Olympic Committee
From:
Subject: Withdraw Boston’s 2024 Olympics Bid
Hosting the 2024 Olympic Games in Boston would be a great honor and an attractive opportunity to demonstrate the United States’ competitiveness and global leadership. Despite the opportunities, hosting such a mega sporting event bears tremendous downsides, including cost overrun, economic uncertainty, and reputation risk. In addition, Boston’s credential as a host city remains dubious. Hence, I urge USOC to withdraw Boston’s 2024 Olympic bid submitted to the International Olympic Committee.
Cost Overruns
Notwithstanding Boston’s announcement that all funding used for infrastructure and venues needed for the Olympics will be raised from the private sector, history indicated that this promise would most likely become an empty one and consequently threaten the host’s financial health.
A study suggested that between 1976 and 2012, the average Olympic cost overrun from the bid estimate to the final statement was more than 200 percent. Moreover, there is no form of insurance that can mitigate the risk when private fund falls short. The only way to subsidize such overrun is to use state tax fund, provided that federal fund will not be available for the event. In retrospect,
