Bidding for Development

In 2012, over four billion people tuned in to watch the London Summer Olympics. As the single largest mega-event in the world, the Olympics has the power to captivate the global imagination. Long before athletes vie for a gold medal, however, competition between cities eager to host the Games kicks off with a rigorous bid process. The lengthy and expensive endeavor to host the Olympics is as high-stakes as any sporting event. Rather than encouraging cities to refrain from bidding, Bidding for Development takes a policy approach that challenges stakeholders to bid responsibly and strategically in pursuit of concrete outcomes.

Every bid city has the potential to accelerate long-term transportation development through a strategic and robust planning process. This book concentrates on the phenomenon of repeat Olympic bids and the opportunities that may come from bidding, particularly for those cities that never win the Games. In this context, Bidding for Development explores the intersection between transportation infrastructure development, the Olympic bid process, and the resulting legacies experienced by bid losers. The findings address the central question: how can participating in the Olympic bid process accelerate transportation development regardless of the bid result?

In response, this book presents a Bid Framework outlining how and when cities may use the bid to unite resources, align transportation priorities, and empower leaders to achieve urban development objectives in preparation for the Olympic bid. The Bid Framework is then applied to two case studies, Manchester and Istanbul, to examine each bid loser's effectiveness in using the bid process to catalyze transportation development. Concurrently, the book takes into consideration how the International Olympic Committee’s evolving bid regulations and requirements relate to urban development and positive social legacy. Bidding for Development delivers actionable recommendations for all Olympic stakeholders to improve the value of the bid process and transportation benefits beyond the Games.

Review by Mark Bloomfield

Sports are powerful on many levels. From the individual willpower demonstrated by athletes to the passion exhibited by fans to the resources invested in mega-events.  Never has it become more visible to me that large international sporting events have enormous impacts on the lives of people in cities and nations around the world. As the U.S. Ambassador to and longtime participant in South Africa’s Comrades Race, the world’s oldest ultra-marathon…my zeal for running also draws me into any stories related to sports.  This year’s newspaper, TV, radio, and Internet commentaries have been teeming with observations and opinions about the London Olympic Games or Sochi Winter Olympics. And coverage in anticipation of and during the FIFA World Cup in Brazil reached new heights this summer. It is incredible how these events have captivated billions of people. However, I feel that an increasing amount of attention has not been a fixation on the athletic experience or sporting competition. Much of the dialogue, instead, has been on the construction needed to prepare for events, the pressing timelines, and the many complex challenges and controversial issues that surface in relation to a large-scale sporting event. Individuals from every corner of the world, particularly in the respective host cities, have voiced frustrations—sometimes to the degree of leading demonstrations—over the cost of the Games, monetary investment and human capital alike. The pervasiveness of social media has done its part in elevating these concerns and providing a platform for host city residents who may never reap the benefits—physical or social—that are used to justify these costs.

The trifecta of this backdrop, my involvement in South Africa’s Comrades race, and my profession in business economic policy led me to further consider these legacies of sporting events—especially the legacies in terms ofeconomic and urban development. I wanted to know how positive and concrete legacies can be shaped by decision-makers early in the game. Bidding for Development: How the Olympic Bid Process Can Accelerate Transportation Development, came forth as a timely publication in which the authors use quantitative findings from real-world examples and trend analysis to answer questions and make well-informed guidelines on bidding. This book makes an even more unique case that cities can play an active role in preparing themselves to benefit from the Games, without even hosting them. How? By capitalizing on the Olympic bid process.

While many academic books on mega-events focus on cities with winning bids, this publication looks at the phenomenon of repeat Olympic bidders and the advantages that come from bidding for, yet never hosting, the games. In this context, the book explores the junction between transportation development, the Olympic bid process, and the resulting legacies for bid losers.

Whether one is academically, professionally, or personally interested in mega-event legacies and the daunting process that goes with any bid for an event, he or she can turn to Bidding for Development for conclusions on how bid leaders and the residents of a city can come out on top after a bid.

At just over 70 pages, this “how to guide” for prospective Olympic bidders features novel comparative analysis and original research drawn from interviews with subject matter experts, analysis of “bid loser” trends, and close review of Manchester’s and Istanbul’s bidding track records—two cities that have bid for the Olympics and Paralympics numerous times without ever hosting.

Drawing primarily on findings from Istanbul’s and Manchester’s bid histories, the authors present a backbone of facts and stats to support their Bid Framework, or logic model and guidelines for interested bidders. Pairedwith these quantitative findings, the book provides a great balance between the analytical and the enjoyable. I was intrigued by the storylines associated with what are described as “bid champions” in each of these cities. The book’s description on how the International Olympic Committee’s bid procedures have evolved over time to meet new global environmental demands adds a strong dynamic to the overall narrative as well. 

As a resident of Washington, D.C., a city currently in the running for the 2024 Olympics and Paralympic Games, I have direct interests in the bid process. After reading Bidding for Development, I am much better prepared to face my city’s bid phases and have a deeper understanding as to what we can do to make it worthwhile. I believe that the book reveals invaluable information to any reader—not only bidders—interested in how urban development strategies in preparation for a sporting mega-event bid process can cause lasting positive social change.

Bloomfield is the president of the American Council for Capital Formation. He is also the U.S. Ambassador to the Comrades ultra-marathon in South Africa. In this role he has received three Vic Clapham Comrades medals, received the Spirit of Comrades award, and was recognized at the unveiling of the Nelson Mandela statue in Washington D.C.

Ngiste R. Abebe

Ngiste is an international development professional working on countries in political transition. Prior to that, she has held a variety of positions in federal government, academia, and the non-profit sectors working on project management, research, and strategic communications. Ngiste received her masters in Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon’s Heinz College to provide a quantitative and analytical supplement to her bachelors from the University of Chicago. A former collegiate rower, and now high school crew coach, her favorite Olympic event is cheering on Team USA’s women’s eight.

Maggie M. Pavelka

Maggie is a communications professional working in federal instructional design and facilitation. She started her career in non-profit development and public health advocacy.  Her interest in global health and international development led her to serve in the U.S. Peace Corps in Senegal, West Africa, before pursuing a Masters of Science in Public Policy and Management at Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College. While at Carnegie Mellon, Maggie worked as a Strategic Communications Specialist at the U.S. Agency for International Development. Her portfolio included external stakeholder engagement, and high-level policy coordination and analysis. As a native Nebraskan, Maggie earned a Bachelor of Journalism degree from the University of Nebraska. She enjoys Husker football and time with her three nieces.

Morgan L. Pierstorff

Morgan is an economic development professional working in international trade and investment. A native Kentuckian, Morgan obtained her undergraduate degree in Interdisciplinary Studies and Political Science from Kentucky Wesleyan College. Morgan has held a variety of state and federal positions working in project management, intergovernmental relations, and legislative affairs. Morgan’s interest in crafting effective policy solutions for globalproblems led her to pursue a Masters of Science in Public Policy and Management at Carnegie Mellon’s Heinz College. While at Carnegie Mellon, Morgan served as a Liaison at the U.S. Department of State in the office of the Secretary’s Special Representative for Global Intergovernmental Affairs where she worked closely with subnational officials in Africa, India, and China. An avid trail runner, Morgan loves living an active lifestyle with her husband and dog Arya, and spending time with her family on their farm in western Kentucky.

Mary “Trina” Bolton

In her profession as an international affairs officer in Washington, D.C., Trina has an opportunity to work on public diplomacy programs and people-to-people exchanges. Her inspiration to pursue a Master of Science in Public Policy  and Management from Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College and current role in D.C. are rooted in her attraction to global policymaking. After earning a degree in international affairs at George Washington University, Trina grew her knowledge in this arena with a job of three years at the Brookings Institution. Originally from Atlanta, she returned for several years before Carnegie Mellon to work and travel for GlobalAtlanta, an international journalism business. Her experience as a cross country athlete at GWU carried over as Trina still runs for fun and incorporates running and other sports in her day-to-day life.