Olympic downhill

The International Olympic Committee thoroughly investigated itself and found six poor souls who have greater value as scapegoats than as committee members. The Salt Lake organizers had their own internal inquiry; there’s no point in naming names, but it has been acknowledged that mistakes were made. Actions that should not have taken place did. Misfortune happened. Time to move on.

Or, in words that only hint at the shallowness of it all, the words of Robert H. Garff, chairman of the Salt Lake Winter Games 2002 Committee, “Today, then, is an appropriate time to begin looking forward to a future vision that has integrity as a motto.”

Since gobbledygook is not yet a medal event, a translation may be in order. Try this: “We have to lose all this bribery talk and get back to what really matters — convincing corporate sponsors that anybody’s going to watch.”

Not so fast. There’s more at stake here than just getting Visa, Coke, Kodak and other understandably balky businesses back in line. The American taxpayers have made a substantial investment in Salt Lake 2002 and deserve a reckoning.

Here’s how substantial: $65 million in federal grants for a light rail system (roughly 10 times what similarly sized cities get for such projects); $90 million in special highway projects, with particular emphasis upon making remote mountaintops more accessible; $9 million in housing rehab grants beyond Salt Lake’s usual allotment.

Of course, Salt Lake City isn’t the first Olympic town to feast at the public trough, but the appetite is reaching alarming proportions. And, since no Olympics since Los Angeles 1984 has turned a substantial profit, — or any profit — such spending grows more illogical.

Cities campaign to get the Olympics by claiming they have the athletic venues, the accommodations, the transportation system needed to host the world. They get the Olympics and immediately plead poverty. Depending upon whether one is reading the IOC bid or the federal grant applications, Salt Lake City is either exquisitely appointed with Olympic accouterments or a disgraceful slum.

According to that bid, Salt Lake 2002 will cost $1.4 billion to stage. On the revenue side, only about $450 million is guaranteed by television contracts. That leaves someone — including the taxpayers of Salt Lake City, Utah, and the United States — on the hook for about $1 billion unless the corporate sponsors come through. Let’s hope someone at Kodak is a huge luge fan. Or at least fluent in gobbledygook.