ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of the rationale behind the Olympic cultural programme by contrasting the aspirations presented at the bid stage with the reality of planning and defining key deliverables once the Games have been awarded. The chapter starts by offering a perspective on the social, political and cultural context of Australia, host nation of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, and providing an overview of the country’s cultural policy development. The chapter moves on to discuss the position of arts and culture within the Games bidding process. The last section describes the mission statements and key deliverables of the Olympic cultural programme as defined by the IOC and interpreted by the Sydney Organising Committee for the Games and compares this framework with the final programme design—four Olympic Arts Festivals—highlighting its chosen themes, key objectives and flagship events. This is followed by a brief overview of the vision and programming focus for Olympic cultural programmes after Sydney 2000.
