Will Obama’s Olympic trip lead to healthier US tourism?
President Barack Obama’s lobbying trip to Denmark to support Chicago’s Olympics bid was viewed as politically risky but what might its impact be on the ailing US’s ailing tourism market?
Obama’s presentation in Copenhagen marked the first time ever that a US president appeared before an International Olympic Committee to lobby for an Olympics to beat out the other likely contenders: Madrid, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo.
“If the U.S. loses, he still might get points for trying. But he would be visibly tied to a failed effort – and to the spending of political capital on an endeavor many Americans might consider unworthy of so much of a president’s time and energy,” wrote the AP.
"If you actually go to Copenhagen and meet with the Olympic committee, you’re really on the line to deliver," said Darrell West, a political analyst at the Washington-based Brookings Institution.
The president already has a lot on the line.
He’s re-examining his administration’s strategy in Afghanistan, managing the shaky US economy and pushing hard for health care overhaul.
If Obama wins his plea, the 2016 Games could bring in $22.5 billion in income for Chicago, according to city estimates. The “Windy City” could draw one million more visitors.
But the overall impact on US tourism seems to be minimal or even negative.
The net benefits of hosting the Olympic Games was rated “substantially negative” in a study that looked at the benefit to overall cities conducted by Darren McHugh of Queen’s University.
As for the benefit of entire countries, a European Tour Operators Association study found that countries hosting the Olympic Games see future drops in tourism growth in the years after the event.
Their report found a trend of over 10 percent growth in visitor arrivals after the Sydney Games turned into a decline just two years later.
Greece saw a similar decline in tourism two years after they hosted the games.
Obama initially said he couldn’t make the trip because he needed to tend to the escalating health care debate at home. Some observers say a healthier move would have been to remain home.
By David Wilkening
David
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