Sustainability and legacy of Beijing's 2008 Olympics

Abstract

Over-spending and under-utilization has long been a footnote to the grandeur of the Olympics, but Beijing set about to break the mold by learning from the past, and planning well in advance. While spending by China in 2008 was by far the most ever showered upon an Olympics – an estimated $42 billion [4], or about 10 times the Athens expenditure – Beijing looks certain to break even on nearly every one of its Olympic arenas. How it achieved this astounding efficiency isn’t all due to astute planning. Beijing offered a rare urban landscape. Much spending was on big-ticket items like an expansion of the subway system, improvements that were needed even if the Olympics had not been held in China. Other funds bankrolled various environmental measures, as Beijing strove to host the greenest Olympics ever. Aim of the research is to analyze the legacy of the Beijing's 2008 Olympics and its impact into the sustainability.