91Èȱ¬

It'd be great experience for European olympians playing catch-up to the Pan-Am, Pan-Arab, Asian & African games.

Particularly good for countries not in the commonwealth.

God help us if Deloitte are doing the calculations. Games always cost more than accountants believe. Ask the citizens of Sheffield. They are still paying for the World Student Games which took place in 1991 and by the time they end up paying in 2024 the cost will have inflated from £147m to over $1bn. That is over £1100 for every man, woman and child in the city. My predicition is that Deloitte will propose that it is economically viable .. and that the poor old taxpayers in every country that is unlucky enough to hold the games will end up proving it is not. Remember the budget for London 2012 was approved at £2bn - it is currently well on track to break £9bn. Beware accountants bearing reports.

Get the IAAF and FINA and the relevant European federations for those sports on board. The rest will follow.

As for European performance at Olympic Games, the world is generally becoming more competitive so more medals spread around...or not?

No.

It's an interesting idea and would undoubtedly raise the profile of the European Championships of many sports. It would also tend to raise the level because fewer competitors would be tempted to skip the Championships for a "bigger" event elsewhere.

If the scheduling were sensible, it would make sense. Btw, aren't there already a Mediterrenean Games in Europe?

I love how this article has a picture of Jessica Ennis on the link on the front page of 91Èȱ¬ sport - any excuse, huh?!

Nevermind that she has the only slightest connection to the article - if more people check out the blog, it's successful, right?

Seriously, what is there in this blog, apart from a couple of standard media comments, that is not in the main article about this news. I thought the point of a blog was to analyze the situation in greater depth and provide useful information and intelligent opinion.

But why bother, eh?! Much better and easier to post a picture of Ms. Ennis with the blog and then put your feet up!

At 18:49p.m. 14th abr 2011, kencharman wrote:
God help us if Deloitte are doing the calculations. Games always cost more than accountants believe. Ask the citizens of Sheffield. They are still paying for the World Student Games which took place in 1991 and by the time they end up paying in 2024 the cost will have inflated from £147m to over $1bn. That is over £1100 for every man, woman and child in the city. My predicition is that Deloitte will propose that it is economically viable .. and that the poor old taxpayers in every country that is unlucky enough to hold the games will end up proving it is not. Remember the budget for London 2012 was approved at £2bn - it is currently well on track to break £9bn. Beware accountants bearing reports.

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Now this is good information and good journalism! Mr Pearce - please take note! Mr Charman - fancy a job at the 91Èȱ¬? I think they need you!

Good idea, go for it. But award it to a host country, not a city. That way, smaller countries can get in on the act.

James, true, but it is a potential obstacle for countries like Italy and Spain, isn't it??? Both are quite important players on the European scene.

You over-estimate the Pan-Am games ,they're a complete non-event.
No leading athletes take part and it's not even televised in the US,other than a few hours on Spanish language tv.

In principle, it sounds a fantastic idea. Bring together all the (Olympic) sports that hold their own Euro championships and put them under one roof. Bingo - your very own Euro-Olympics, an ideal feeder for the big one and should be a popular event with the paying public.

In practice I strongly suspect that there will be excessive logistical and political hurdles to overcome, not to mention the finance (ref. optimistic accounting by a certain person against recent history).

Shame... in an ideal world, we could really make it work.

#11 TheRealRingo

To be fair there is almost no televised network coverage of any summer "Olympic" sports in the US (this includes athletics) other than the Olympic games themselves. (There does seem to be a fixation with ice skating.) The Pan-Am games are no exception to this, but they are much more highly regarded in the rest of the continent.

I think it will be a brilliant idea to have a european games, it could help european countries gauge where they stand in a multi sports competiton,it should than help european countries in the olympics.

If europe does not act now to improve sports performances, asian countries will dominate the olympics and world championships in the future

France has the Jeux de la Francophonie, as do Greece, Poland, Lithuania, Macedonia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia (they are Observer members of the Francophonie), so really having the Commonwealth Games is not really the reason why Team GB manages to punch above its weight. The real reason is money, and our Lottery Funding.

I don't really see a need for a European Games: how would it change the competitiveness of the events? If the best in Europe are already competing at, say, the European Swimming Championships, then how would making a European Game change anything?

I believe it has been mentioned, but it really will just come down money. Surely, a European Games would dilute the amount going to each discipline? Wouldn't greater promotion of existing competitions increase revenue?

I see the attraction of a European Olympics; I just do not see the need.

A waste of time and stupid to compare it with other continents.

Games like the Panams and Asians are great occasions but they happen instead of individual continental championships, we have those individual championships now and doin both is overkill. Also the quote about how a combined championships could make more money than the individuals is stupid. I doubt very much it would make the same as the Euro football championships alone.

Also consider the number of events and facilities. A lot fo sports with multiple disciplines (archery, cycling etc.) cater for nearly every one of those during their championships because they are held at specific locations with the right facilities and have the time to do so because they are the only sport present. In the olympics time issues and facility limitations mean not all of these disciplines happen. Effectively banding togethr the championships could mean leaving out some of these disciplines also.

I find it difficult to get excited about regional competitions. I can't really see the point of slapping someone on the back and saying "Congratulations, if we ignore those Jamaicans and Americans you are the fastest man in the World".

I appreciate that my comments are a little negative and that the regional bodies have to balance the books but I can't see how it really matters from a purely sporting point of view.

I would have two seperate championships - one with only individual medals, and another with only team medals. I think that the focus on the medal table devalues minor team sports (and relays) and that is a shame.

In theory, a European Games would be a tremendous addition to the sporting calendar. Realistically, however, I can only see such an event being accommodated at the expense of championship events in individual sports and I don't see that happening easily.

I also don't understand why a date of 2015 is being proposed for the inaugural event. Surely the most logical time would be in 2014 (halfway through the Olympic cycle and a year where there are not as many world championship events as odd-numbered years). In 2015, I can see a scenario where athletes, in a number of sports, could feel forced to choose between European and world competition with predictable consequences.

The other issue is over the size of any event. One of the main problems the Commonwealth Games has had in recent times is the tendency of host cities - Manchester being a notable exception - to go overboard with expensive facilities, thus creating a feeling that the event is out of the reach of other, smaller cities. A European Games, more often than not, should not go to a London, Paris, Berlin or Madrid, but instead to smaller cities that would have no realistic hope of staging an Olympics. That could help to give it a distinct identity and keep potential costs down.