SUSTAINABILITY OF THE OLYMPIC GAMES: SECURITY ASPECT

Abstract

The Olympic Games require one of the most complex mass event-related security operations in the world. Using both theoretical and empirical knowledge, this research on governance, work scope and budget for security and safety within the summer Olympic Games from Sydney 2000 to Tokyo 2021 (six case studies) provides a comparative analysis and future perspectives in the domain of Olympics-related security and safety. Terrorism remains the greatest threat to the Olympics due to the scale of direct and indirect effects while cyber-attacks are becoming an extremely threat. Although the security budget occupies a significant share of the total organizational budget of the Games, those investments can be justified by long-term legacy. Further research should address the methods to optimize security measures against restrictions of human rights and liberties, as well as on prevention of inter-agency rivalry and prevention of cyber-attacks at the Olympic Games.