'Citius, Altius, Fortius': Save it for the economy

Research indicates that the cost of hosting the 2036 Olympics could outweigh its tangible benefits. It's best if we achieve 'faster, higher, stronger' economic output before making a bid

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The Prime Minister’s announcement at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) session in Mumbai that India will "leave no stone unturned" in its bid to host the 2036 Olympic Games has removed whatever doubt there might have been about India’s ambition to host the modern world’s biggest sporting extravaganza. Unfortunately, much as we would like India to join the small club of nations that have hosted the Olympics, there’s no getting away from ground realities. And here the reality underlying our bid is best summed up in the words used by Samuel Johnson to describe second marriages: "the triumph of hope over experience." And, in the case at hand, over hard evidence too.