Category: events

discussion about major events, and predominently the legacies that these events can leave

Sydney 2000 Volunteers. A decade of wasted legacy?

Closing Ceremony:
Sydney 2000

This week saw the 10 year anniversary of the Opening Ceremony of the Sydney 200o Olympic Games. A commemorative ceremony was held at the Olympic Stadium. Volunteers were excited there was finally a (semi) valid reason to get their uniforms out of mothballs and don them once again. It’s no coincidence that Lord Coe and the London 2012 team are in Sydney, hoping to emulate the magic that the volunteers added to the games.

I was one of the 45,000-odd people who took some time off work and volunteered, carrying a placard in the opening and closing ceremonies and working with doping control during the Olympic and Paralympic Games. I knew it would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. And it was. Continue reading Sydney 2000 Volunteers. A decade of wasted legacy?

PhD on Event Legacy: results from a preliminary study

Build it and they will come? An analysis of the impact of the Australian Surf Life Saving Championships in Scarborough, Western Australia on sport development (a research summary*)

It is commonly believed that major sporting events should provide ongoing benefits, including increased participation in the sport and physical activity in general. This is becoming an increasingly important aspect of hosting a major sporting event and it is commonly recommended that event organisers consider how a major event can benefit the development of the sport. In terms of providing ongoing legacies, it is not a case of “build it [an event] and they [legacies] will come”; a conscious, sustained effort is required in order to create a legacy that will benefit sport. Continue reading PhD on Event Legacy: results from a preliminary study

It’s in our hands: my World Cup legacy

There’s a small event on at the moment. It may have just brushed the realms of your outermost consciousness. It’s the FIFA World Cup.

My PhD research is in the area of event legacy – the impact and change that events have. My specific area is in community sport/sport development – so in this current example, will Football in South Africa be played more? Have better coaches/officials? More members and supporters?

Continue reading It’s in our hands: my World Cup legacy

Co-branding of events

Co-branding is a marketing term that describes the associations that people create between one or more “things”. These can be anything from the smell of a sunscreen to a childhood holiday destination; for me Coppertone and Brooms Head). While co-branding is something that happens sub consciously, it is one of the fundamentals of marketing. Continue reading Co-branding of events