StefanMUC

If I were American at this time, I wouldn't want to make jokes about the dictatorship that will host the next Winter Olympics. By the time 2028, you might live in a martial law authoritarian regime yourself (or even already by November 4th if Orangehead doesn't get the results he likes and his sycophants don't stop him).

Lithuania won the voting (jury & televote, mine included) in the German replacement programme last night. Small consolation.

I know. If serving a full term of 8 years, Coates would be 83. This is a pipe dream.

I very much doubt Thomas Bach’s term will already end next year. He’s surely got enough backing for now to extend until 2025, when Coates will be 75. That’s not an age to lead “the youth of the world”.

More PR bull, as expected. Like the famous „we have more candidates than before“ at the opening of the 2022 bidding, just when Munich got culled by the referendum. In the end it was, literally in retrospect, plague or cholera left on the plate.

I appreciate that school of thought but I‘m doubtful Mr B in Lausanne is a student of it.

I’ll just put this here: https://www.playthegame.org/news/comments/2020/1002_a-leaked-list-discloses-how-much-cash-the-ioc-paid-for-the-2016-olympics-in-rio-de-janeiro/ Bach’s “favourite” German journalist Jens Weinreich digged deep into host city contracts and IOC accounting. And the results should be very worrying for any future (potential) host city, but especially for Tokyo with the inevitable postponement cost overruns.

Yeah, what do health experts know when the IOC evokes the beautiful memories of Antwerp 1920. Don’t we all remember that one? Much better cure for covid-19 than any vaccine.

We read it in French class, though it was quite hard at the time to follow fully. I think I still have my copy somewhere, time to go through it again. I really hope though that by 2024, the world has overcome this "plague". That said, I'm not convinced that we'll have an Olympics (and ceremonies) next year.

In a democracy not taking its election rules from the 18th century, he wouldn’t have been. But Beijing 2022 fate will not depend on that Pennywise clown anyway.

Mass events/ceremonies with 100s/1000s participating... Not happening before vaccination. And that may well not be readily available by July 2021. There may be a way to hold - some - sports with no or little contact, but that’s about it.

I don’t see the problem anymore: instead of injecting steroids and stuff, athletes get disinfectants in their venes and all will be fine. Approved by POTUS, MD.

The world in many ways is still feeling the effects of the financial crisis 12 years ago. This is not a joke.

While I don't think the IOC cares about India when it comes to Winter Olympics or about the volatile (to put it mildly) man in the White House, I wouldn't be surprised if 2022 is the next thing to blow up right into the IOC's face. They chose Beijing in a competition between leftovers after all serious European contenders either didn't even make the starting line (Munich) or got fearful and annoyed along the way (Oslo), both accompanied or caused by sheer arrogance from Bach and company. That alone was problematic already, not least because of the human rights issues - but beggars couldn't be choosers in 2015 either and the fear for a potentially unstable Kazakhstan was obviously winning. Now, less than two years before the scheduled opening ceremony, a lot will depend on the will of the Chinese government to set up proper health and safety standards and cooperate fully with international organisations such as the WHO to tackle both the cause and the effects of the pandemic. The risk for another major image problem for the IOC is definitely enormous, but I'm sure Thomas Bach will see this again as the Olympic torch being the light at the end of the tunnel, guiding light for China and the world to come out of this crisis and celebrate unity etc etc.

Empty gestures are IOC core business these days