ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how the Olympics' growth evangelism has cast an ecological pall over event after event. It looks at the way the Games welcome hosts into modernity, then considers greenwashing practices and responses at various Summer and Winter Games. Hosting the 1964 Olympic Games was hugely significant for Japan as it returned to the global stage as a peaceful, economically confident nation. The Winter Olympics began later than the de Coubertin extravaganzas, in the 1920s, and quickly stimulated the development of ski resorts and activities, with virtually no thought of their environmental impact. The group Environmental Watch of the North Caucasus (EWNC) has accused Olympics organizers of illegally dumping construction waste, blocking wildlife migration routes, and destroying parts of Sochi National Park. The environmental impacts in a region subject to desertification could be profound and long-lasting.
