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Over the past decade, the Olympic Movement has become increasingly dependent upon financial support provided by corporate sponsors. This study explores the evolution of the Olympic sponsorship programme, presents current and future marketing strategies employed by sponsors, and discusses major challenges within the programme.

In this article the development of the Olympic Games (the biggest mega sport event ever) will be described as an interesting case in the sport‐tourism relationship. The Olympics are indeed the biggest show on earth … the most participants in history, … spectators on site and the greatest television audience ever. This marriage of convenience between sport and tourism will be explored and examplified, first in general and second by means of on historical overview (of the Summer and Winter Games) and the economic impact of the Olympic Games.

This chapter coins the term Development through Mega-Events (DME) in order to propose a next step for developing social legacies in accordance with the principle of social development.

This chapter’s argument for DME is developed using quantitative, indicator-based data from the Olympic Games Impact (OGI) study as well as relevant literature from the sub-fields of Sport for Development and Peace and Sport Mega-Events.

We discuss the absence of a baseline understanding of the properties of sport mega-events. Also absent are progressive efforts to achieve sustainability by means other than competition among prospective bidders. We recommend that hosts tie social legacies to public policy objectives that are concomitant with the properties of the sport mega-events. Retrospectively applied, OGI data from 2010 reveals social inclusion as one potential social legacy that reflects the nature of the Olympics and the policy realm in the host region.

This chapter is original work. It would be of interest to potential host communities, policymakers, and researchers.

This paper aims to understand how the sustainability theme has been incorporated into the new Olympic planning guidelines based on analysing the case of Tokyo (2020), which was severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

For this, field research using the case study method was carried out that involved 21 in-depth interviews with experts from different entities affected by the event.

As a result, it was possible to identify that some characteristics already presented in the Tokyo project came to break away from the gigantism observed in the past Olympic editions in an attempt to demonstrate alignment with the new principles brought by the IOC (2020) and 2020 + 5 Agenda that had as one of its main objectives to simplify the Olympics, making the event more sustainable and accessible for future host societies.

At the end, some trends for the future of the Olympic Games are also presented in order to guide future studies in the area, as well as help the future host cities and their companies in planning their investments.

While the Olympic Games are always under the spotlight, the Paralympic Games are somehow ignored. This paper aims to invite the general public to think about the para-athletes and the differential treatments they received.

Among the participating countries, many of them were unable to win a single Olympic or Paralympic medal. When the dependent variable is left-censored, ordinary least squares regression is asymptotically biased downwards. In the literature, researchers typically employ the maximum likelihood Tobit model to take care of the censoring problem. However, some researchers argue that the Hurdle model has an advantage over the Tobit model in identifying the determinants of winning Olympic medals. Following their wisdom, this paper employs both the Tobit and Hurdle models in analysis.

The empirical evidence gathered in this paper suggests that population size, host status and average years of schooling are the big three socio-economic determinants when it comes to winning medals at the Paralympic Games and Olympic Games. The findings support the hypothesis that sports talent is randomly distributed and a large country has a higher chance to have talented athletes or para-athletes winning the Olympic medals. The strong host advantage also showed up in the following Paralympics but was not so strong at the next Olympics.

This paper not only examines the relationship between various social, economic and political factors in determining the success of a nation in the Paralympic Games but also attempts to identify possible non-traditional determinants.

The Olympic Games is the largest sporting mega event of its type, with deep cultural and historical roots. The event is short lived compared to the lifespan of the infrastructure required in host cities. The purpose of this paper is to examine models of adaptability in Olympic construction, using case studies in previous Olympic host cities of the Summer Olympic Games (Rome 1960, London 2012), to assess the impact of adaptability on future legacy.

A mixed methods approach (archival research, direct observation), was used in two case studies: Rome (Palazzetto dello Sport, Palazzo dello Sport), and London (London Olympic Velodrome, London Aquatics Centre). The case studies examined how adaptability was used in design to secure legacy.

In the selected case studies (Rome 1960, London 2012), adaptability has had a positive impact on the post-Games use of venues, all four of which remain in use today. However, there are multiple factors that contribute to post-Games legacy, and further research is necessary.

Whilst some positive results were observed in this study, more research is necessary across a broader spectrum of sites and venues to make conclusive recommendations for architects designing for Mega Sporting events.

The significance of this study to architectural practice, academia, and society is its potential to benefit future Olympic Games, International Olympic Committee policy, and be extended to other Mega Sporting events.

The originality of this research lies within its analysis of Olympic infrastructures and sustainability, of which there is a current lack of comparative studies in academic research.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the perceptions of the residents of Beijing for the improvement of the tourist infrastructure after the Olympic Games. The study identifies factors affecting the inhabitants' perceptions about the tourist impact of the Olympic Games, and the development of special tourist types.

A group of 1,000 urban Beijing residents from different districts are personally interviewed on their perceptions about Beijing as a tourist destination. Their perceptions are measured on the basis of infrastructure improvements made for the Olympic Games, and the impact these improvements will have in Beijing as a post Olympic city.

The Olympic Games improve tourist infrastructure according to Beijing residents. Infrastructure for the Olympic Games affects the economic development of the Olympic city, as well as the touristic development of the city. The above mentioned factors lead to three clusters of residents, namely the eco tourism supporters, the linked tourism supporters, and the mainstream tourism supporters. These three groups with different characteristics are responsible for tourist improvement, additionally to the development of new tourist models mostly related to the Olympic Games infrastructure.

The improvement of tourist infrastructure in an Olympic City will attract different types of tourists who are not attached only to sports. Tourists interested in culture, in eco‐tourism, in linked tourism, and in mainstream tourism will also be attracted by an Olympic City. The outcomes of the study can be used by future Olympic cities in order to improve their image as a tourist destination.

There is limited research related to the impacts of the Olympic Games into the tourist industry. The present study identifies the impact of the Olympic infrastructure to different types of tourism. Different clusters of residents will provide valuable insights related to tourism stemming from the Olympic infrastructure.

The interest for hosting the Olympic Games is now at its historical peak. Heads of states, culture elites, top athletes and professional marketers are engaged in selling their cities to the deciding International Olympic Committee. This host selection process has recently been in the focus of public interest due to the bribery allegations against the winner of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games, Salt Lake City.

The purpose of this paper is to review Olympic mascots in the electronic and traditional communications environments.

Olympic mascots from 2006 to 2012 are analyzed using a descriptive semiotic analysis technique.

Results found that none of the 2006-2012 mascots clearly represented the two most recognizable icons of the Olympic movement, the Olympic Rings and the Olympic Flame. The association of the London 2012 mascots with the Olympic Games are found to be limited.

This research sets the stage for a number of future studies to further assess the management issues, social benefits, and potential missteps regarding mascots at the Olympic Games and other mega-events.

The practitioner of today working for a mega-event like the Olympic Games needs to be aware of the potential benefits and inherent risks of developing and implementing a mascot.

This research is the first to look specifically at Olympic mascots in the electronic age and contrast their use to traditional communications.