The Olympics continue to prove to be extremely wasteful and Pyeongchang is the latest example:
An aerial view of Olympic venues in Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province on Aug. 22 /Yonhap
Gangwon Province is mired in massive debts after hosting the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang earlier this year.
The mountainous province with a population of 1.5 million had to host the biggest Winter Olympics so far, and six months on conflict with locals and unpaid wages continue to plague the local government, while the astronomically expensive venues sit empty.
The biggest headache is what to do with the speed skating rink, ice hockey center and Alpensia Sliding Center that have proved a bottomless pit of maintenance costs.
The province has to fork out W20.3 billion until 2022 just to keep the facilities running, but nobody knows what will happen afterwards (US$1=W1,109). Gangwon Province has asked the National Assembly to have the central government take on 75 percent of the upkeep costs, but the central government refused since it could set a bad precedent for allocating state funds.
The alpine skiing venue in Jeongseon, which was built on a 101-hectare piece of land owned by the Korea Forest Service, faces demolition. The government footed 75 percent of the W203.4 billion cost of building it and Gangwon Province the rest. A precondition was to return the land to the government after the Winter Olympics, but now locals want to keep it, hoping that the facility can generate income for the remote province.
Environmentalists and the KFS insist it must be demolished and the forest restored. [Chosun Ilbo]
It’s always that way. And yet people fall for the hype and toss out their cash — and tax dollars — every time. PT Barnum was right. There’s a sucker born every minute…
ChickenHead
5 years ago
The 1988 Olympics was necessary for Korea’s development.
The 2002 World Cup was necessary for Korea’s development.
The Winter Olympics was an unnecessary and expensive vanity/corruption project with its few opportunities for social engineering (no spitting, no littering, pedestrian manners, etc) not even considered being taken.
Thr Olympics and World Cup improved Korea in so many ways… from orderly standing in line to bathrooms that no longer seemed like they were on the wrong end of the sewer pipe.
Nothing changed with the Winter Olympics.
Never again, Korea. Let someone else squander their money.
And quit showing off so you don’t come to Trump’s attention when it comes time to renegotiate trade and military issues.
Korean government policy is getting dumber in a lot of ways.
Smokes
5 years ago
“”I am lost for words about now. I can’t say anything right now.
I’m really excited. It will be very good to compete in my own
country.” – Kim Yu-na, reigning Olympic figure skating champion
and Pyeongchang 2018 bid ambassador.”
Well one girl got to skate for her country in her own country so I guess it’s all worth it right? 🙄
F’ing people with stupid f’ing sports. 😎
Flyingsword
5 years ago
You all miss the point, it was an opportunity to hide all that bribery and corruption money, the olympics were just a means to an end.
setnaffa
5 years ago
Whatever good 1988 and 200 did, you can see in Chamsil…
Pardon the expression; but “Duh!!!”
It’s always that way. And yet people fall for the hype and toss out their cash — and tax dollars — every time. PT Barnum was right. There’s a sucker born every minute…
The 1988 Olympics was necessary for Korea’s development.
The 2002 World Cup was necessary for Korea’s development.
The Winter Olympics was an unnecessary and expensive vanity/corruption project with its few opportunities for social engineering (no spitting, no littering, pedestrian manners, etc) not even considered being taken.
Thr Olympics and World Cup improved Korea in so many ways… from orderly standing in line to bathrooms that no longer seemed like they were on the wrong end of the sewer pipe.
Nothing changed with the Winter Olympics.
Never again, Korea. Let someone else squander their money.
And quit showing off so you don’t come to Trump’s attention when it comes time to renegotiate trade and military issues.
Korean government policy is getting dumber in a lot of ways.
“”I am lost for words about now. I can’t say anything right now.
I’m really excited. It will be very good to compete in my own
country.” – Kim Yu-na, reigning Olympic figure skating champion
and Pyeongchang 2018 bid ambassador.”
Well one girl got to skate for her country in her own country so I guess it’s all worth it right? 🙄
F’ing people with stupid f’ing sports. 😎
You all miss the point, it was an opportunity to hide all that bribery and corruption money, the olympics were just a means to an end.
Whatever good 1988 and 200 did, you can see in Chamsil…
*2002