Rogge Admits Error
Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), when asked if he regretted awarding the 2008 Olympics to China, admitted that it had not been a wise and a sound decision.
I’ve said that it is very easy with hindsight to criticize the decision. It’s easy to say now that this was not a wise and a sound decision.
— Jacques Rogge
IOC President
Yet Rogge defended himself by claiming that Beijing had “clearly the best bid” and offered the strong incentive of taking the Olympics to a country with 20% of the world’s total population.
This is a total load of bullshit! The only way that China had the best bid would be if criteria other than the IOC’s own Applicant City Evaluation Report was not only considered but weighed far more heavily than those official evaluations.
Tags: 2008 Olympics | China | IOC
April 10th, 2008 at 4:44 pm
[…] Rogge Admits Error […]
April 11th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
Lets be realistic, the country that wins the Olympic Bid usually cussions the pockets of several officials that make the final decision. Also, honestly, name one Perfect Country for the Olympics? China may not have an ‘exceptional’ human rights record, and Tibet seems to be a sore spot of sorts, but if you name any country I will find enough reasons to protest. The problem is that China is communist, and the west is encouraging the protests. If China was a democratic nation, even with Tibet under their fist, and the same human rights record, protests would be muted considerably. China has come a long way in the past 20 years, I say we should cut them some slack. The Olympics shouldn’t be so politicised, it is unfair to the Athletes.
April 11th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
Zhann,
Welcome to Reflections From A Murky Pond.
Oh yes, the IOC has a long history of corruption. That doesn’t make China being allowed to host the Games acceptable though. Please read through China’s Olympic Bid where I’ve detailed just how pathetic the Beijing bid actually was.
This is also not a case of West vs. East or Freedom vs. Communism / Totalitarianism. Plenty of nations who do not care for each other or the US are all aligned against this atrocity.
As for being “unfair to the athletes,” it would be far more unfair to a billion or more people not to capitalize on this event politically. It’s the civilized world’s one best shot at forcing China to correct it’s behavior.