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Paris aspires to be the most sustainable Olympic Games in history, but it was London, more than a decade ago, that showed that host cities do not have to be left with empty stadiums in poor condition after the Games are over.
By Ken Belson
Report from London
This week, the world will be watching what is being touted as the most sustainable Olympic Games in history, a goal that Paris organizers aim to achieve in part by renovating structures or building new ones.
More than 90 percent of the venues to be used for the Paris Games are transitional or already existing, many of the buildings are old (including one used in the 1924 Olympics) and needed to be modernized.
For decades, the International Olympic Committee has been plagued by photographs of ruined Olympic venues years after the Games ended. The head of organizing the games and the white elephants that were left in his wake had scared away potential bidders. In the future, the IOC hopes that its ambitions for more sustainable Olympic venues will attract other potential bidders.
The Winter Games in Milan Cortina, Italy, in 2026 and the Summer Games in Los Angeles in 2028 will largely use existing infrastructure, said Marie Sallois, the IOC’s director of sustainability.
Before Paris, London proved at the 2012 Olympics that host cities don’t have to be left with empty venues long after the Games are over. Hundreds of acres of land in what was once an industrial component of East London were cleared to make way for the Olympics. The park was added, public transport was added, and subsequently, almost all the Olympic buildings were dismantled or renovated. The athletes’ village was transformed into personal housing, work buildings were built on the site of the sports facilities, and the stadium, the aquatic center and the velodrome. they have been renovated and opened to the public.
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