General News
3 August, 2024
Barry's Corner
The Olympic Games are on for young and old in the famous city of Paris.
The Tour de France has just finished and with sleepless nights still making it hard to concentrate, along comes another burst.
Lucky these games only come around every four years.
To hold a major event like this is a project with the glitz and glamour of well-
honed athletes and supporters, competing for medals and achievement to justify the endless hours of training, injuries and commitment.
For the competitors the experience can be life-changing, and for many success at the Games can lead to great career opportunities.
To score a medal of any colour is a fantastic achievement, but that should not be the only criteria for success.
Competing with the world's best is a personal landmark.
But it is the cost for the country hosting the event which has been of growing concern to host countries.
I wonder if there can be savings made - maybe turning down the glitz a few points and focus more on the sports themselves.
Showing off the country has become a great and serious consideration, but surely France is already full of tourists, with or without the Games.
For many smaller countries the cost of running the Olympics is out of reach.
There are other opportunities to take advantage of sporting prowess, with the Commonwealth Games, Winter Olympics and countless other international tournaments.
There does not appear to be any shortage of choices, and a good number of regional athletes have achieved success from more humble backgrounds.
Just to compete takes so much discipline, aside from the cost of travelling to the Games.
It is such a huge effort, it is a wonder many of them have to go to work.
I suspect we might have to make some serious decisions over the coming decades if the Games are to continue in the current agenda.
Meanwhile, I wish all the athletes well, and hope they create some inspiration to us all.