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The dangers of sportswashing for the Olympics
Should there be a limit on foreign investment in professional sports? Sportswashing—when a government uses sports to improve its country’s reputation, distract from human rights abuses, or political controversies—has become a major problem in athletics and pro sports. But can governments do anything to stop it?
Washington Post sports columnist Sally Jenkins joined Ian Bremmer on GZERO World ahead of the Olympic Games in Paris to talk about politics, sports and how they overlap. Saudi Arabia has invested billions of dollars in the last few years in sports like golf and tennis to help burnish its global reputation as a modern, forward-looking country. Sportswashing isn’t just a moral issue but also a political one, Jenkins points out, because the more foreign money that gets entangled in domestic companies, the more difficult it is for governments to draw a red line. Jenkin also addresses the NBA’s complex relationship with China on issues like Hong Kong, another example of how financial ties can lead to compromising on democratic values, a position Jenkins calls “the anaconda in the chandelier.”
Watch full episode: The politics of the Paris Olympics
Season 7 of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the award-winning weekly global affairs series, launches nationwide on public television stations (check local listings).
New digital episodes of GZERO World are released every Monday on YouTube. Don''t miss an episode: subscribe to GZERO's YouTube channel and turn on notifications (🔔).
Could the Olympics ever be free of politics?
Should politics play a role at the Olympic Games? The International Olympic Committee insists the Games are non-political, but in practice, that’s never really been the case. From boycotts to political protests to national scandals, politics always loom large at the Olympics, and the 2024 Paris Games are no exception.
Washington Post sports columnist Sally Jenkins joins Ian Bremmer on GZERO World to talk about how politics and sports overlap at the Olympics and beyond, including the IOC’s troubling coziness with authoritarian countries like China and Russia. Jenkins points to the Olympic Truce and the history of international cooperation at the Games but also stresses that this Olympics is taking place amid one of the most divisive political eras in decades. Despite the controversies and geopolitical tensions at the games, she says it is the athletes themselves that “scrape the grime” off the Games and make them so inspiring. The effort and commitment to compete after training for four years, she says, is one of the “great competitive miracles we all get to watch.”
Season 7 of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the award-winning weekly global affairs series, launches nationwide on public television stations (check local listings).
New digital episodes of GZERO World are released every Monday on YouTube. Don''t miss an episode: subscribe to GZERO's YouTube channel and turn on notifications (🔔).
The politics of the Paris Olympics
As the political drama ramps up in the US, Democrats have acted with remarkable speed and solidarity to pass the torch to VP Kamala Harris. At the same time, the world’s most elite athletes are gathering along the Seine in Paris to light a more literal torch, of the Olympic variety.
Washington Post sports columnist Sally Jenkins joins Ian Bremmer on GZERO World to talk about some of the biggest stories leading into the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, including security challenges, the ban on Russia’s Olympic Committee due to the war in Ukraine, and growing calls for reform within the IOC, which has faced accusations of corruption and bid rigging in recent years. The IOC insists the Games aren’t political, but in practice, that’s never really been the case. This year, a doping scandal involving Chinese swimmers, Russian disinformation, and mounting calls for Israeli athletes to compete under a neutral flag threaten to overshadow the City of Light’s big celebration. Jenkins and Bremmer also dig into Saudi sportswashing, China’s relationship with pro sports teams in the US, and the WNBA’s most-watched season in history.
Season 7 of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the award-winning weekly global affairs series, launches nationwide on public television stations (check local listings).
New digital episodes of GZERO World are released every Monday on YouTube. Don''t miss an episode: subscribe to GZERO's YouTube channel and turn on notifications (🔔).
Politics, power, and the Paris Olympics: Insight from WashPo sports columnist Sally Jenkins
Listen: The 2024 Summer Olympic Games kick off in Paris this week as the world’s most elite athletes representing more than 200 countries gather in the French capital to compete for gold. Over the next two weeks, we’ll see triumphant wins, heartbreaking losses, superhuman feats of strength, and touching displays of international sportsmanship. But politics loom large at the Olympics, threatening to overshadow the City of Light’s big celebration. Washington Post sports columnist Sally Jenkins joins Ian Bremmer on the GZERO World Podcast to discuss the biggest stories heading into the 2024 Olympics, including the ban on Russia’s Olympic Committee, calls for Israeli athletes to compete under a neutral flag, and security concerns at what Jenkins calls “the most sprawling and urban Olympics in history.” They also dig into the problem with Saudi sportswashing, the NBA’s financial interest in China, and a transformative WNBA season that’s bringing more eyeballs to games than ever before.
Subscribe to the GZERO World Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred podcast platform, to receive new episodes as soon as they're published.
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Ian Explains: Why authoritarian rulers love the Olympics
The International Olympic Committee says global politics have no place at the Olympics and insists the Olympics promote democratic values through sports, so why does the IOC keep awarding the Games to authoritarian countries like Russia and China?
On Ian Explains, Ian Bremmer breaks down the complicated relationship between global politics and the Olympic Games. The IOC has an uncomfortable history of cozying up to authoritarian rulers, like Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, who use the Games as propaganda, who use the Games to project the image of their country they want the world to see. Calls are growing for more transparency in the IOC, which has faced accusations of corruption, bribery, and bid-rigging in recent years. The 2024 Olympics will be a test of the IOC’s ability to remain politically neutral while balancing the ideals of democracy with the geopolitical realities of a world that’s more fragmented than ever. Can they stick the landing?
Watch more on the full episode of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, in which Washington Post sports columnist Sally Jenkins discusses security concerns and logistical challenges at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, the complicated relationship between global politics and the events, and sportswashing.
Season 7 of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the award-winning weekly global affairs series, launches nationwide on public television stations (check local listings).
New digital episodes of GZERO World are released every Monday on YouTube. Don''t miss an episode: Subscribe to GZERO's YouTube channel and turn on notifications (🔔).
Paris 2024 Olympics chief: “We are ready”
Eight months ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Tony Estanguet says Paris plans to offer “a fantastic moment of celebration.”
Estanguet serves as President of the Paris 2024 host committee and led the hard-fought battle to bring the Games back to the city for the first time in 100 years.
The three-time Olympic gold medalist, a canoeist, is one of the most decorated French athletes and the first to win gold in three different Olympiads. In 2022, he served as his nation’s flag-bearer at the Beijing Games.
“I lived (my) first life as an athlete and my life completely changed, thanks to the Olympics and sport,” Estanguet told GZERO’s Tony Maciulis.
On the sidelines of the recent Paris Peace Forum, Estanguet said Paris is ready to host an estimated 10 million spectators across 41 venues in and around the city. The city recently had a spate of bad publicity over bed bug infestation, a story Estanguet says is “ridiculous.” “People will criticize,” he said, but “we are ready to welcome the world.”
France is not, however, prepared to welcome the Russian flag. President Emmanuel Macron said in September that Russia has no place at the Games due to war crimes committed during its ongoing war in Ukraine. While the International Olympic Committee will ultimately decide, Macron wants Russian athletes to compete under the Russian Olympic Committee flag instead.
“Definitely there is impact on political side, but what is really important for me to protect and to preserve is the fact that the decisions are made from the sport movement,” Estanguet said.
The 2024 Summer Games begin on Friday, July 26.
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- Ian Explains: Why authoritarian rulers love the Olympics - GZERO Media ›
Haiti unrest: Will the UN's troop deployment help restore peace?
Ian Bremmer shares his insights on global politics this week on World In :60.
Will the UN's deployment of troops to Haiti help bring peace to the country?
It certainly won't hurt, you know, a thousand Kenyan troops being deployed, as well as lots support for training of police and militias. There's been no government in Haiti. It's been taken over by gangs, massive amounts of violence and vigilantism in response. They need help. The UN's history in Haiti has been absolutely checkered and problematic. And so there are a lot of people that are concerned about this. But on balance, I'm really glad that finally someone is getting something done better. Frankly, if the US and Canada had played at least some role in this, given that their/our backyard.
Despite all his legal issues, is Trump still the candidate-to-beat in the race for the GOP nomination?
Oh, absolutely. And, you know, you know that I mean, we're seeing only gains compared to all the other candidates. The real question is, can trump win the presidency? And at this point, you have to say, of course, it's plausible, in part because the Republicans are performing better in the views of the voters, the electorate on the economy. Certainly illegal immigration numbers on the back of pent up demand and nobody moving for a few years of pandemic are now at record levels again. And there's very little Biden can do before the election to stop it. And of course, he's seen as too old to run and that's not going to be less true in 14 months. Trump has his own litany of serious personal challenges, and the Democrats and a lot of independents hate him with a true passion. That certainly matters. The abortion issue certainly matters, and incumbency certainly matters. So right now, if you make me make a bet, I'd still bet that Biden is likely to win by a little, but it's real close. I have no confidence in that call.
Bed bugs in Paris. My God. Would you still attend the Summer Olympics?
I thought bed bugs were things you caught in a bed. Like in a bed that's not clean. We need to change the name, at least, because apparently people are getting bed bugs in movie theaters and on metros and all over these public places in Paris. So I think we can't call them bed bugs. The first I want Macron to give us a new, more patriotic name for this animal that apparently anybody can catch pretty much anywhere. And yeah, it wouldn't stop me from going to Paris Olympics, though I've got a lot of other stuff I need to do, but I'd probably be a little careful where I sit down, crowded places and things like that. I don't know. Can't do any. There’s not any cream you put on yourself to avoid bed bugs. Who the hell knows? I guess you're going to find out if you're going to Paris.
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