Securing the Olympics: at what price?

Abstract

This study considers the ever-increasing preoccupation those countries hosting mega-sports events have with implementing security and counter-terrorism measures and the consequences of this upon the civil liberties of their citizens. From the seminal, and undoubtedly tragic, events of the Munich Olympics in 1972 until the most recent terrorist attack witnessed at a major sporting event – that which marred the close of the Boston marathon held in April 2013 – this piece reflects upon the full extent of the impact that counter-terrorism measures have had upon the activities of wider society, including the creation of an abnormal host environment prior to and during the sporting spectacle, not to mention its legacy long after the event in question has moved on to its next destination. It suggests that there is a very real danger that mega-sports events create a convenient context within which the impositions of security measures, which are only marginally justifiable in the context of the event in question, continue to be unquestioningly implemented.

Notes

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^2. Toohey and Taylor, ‘Mega Events, Fear, and Risk’ and Jennings, Foul! The Secret World of FIFA.

^3.Toohey, ‘Terrorism, Sport and Public Policy’.

^4.Baker, ‘Terrorism’.

^5.Palmer, ‘Outside the Imagined Community’.

^6.Hassan and O'Kane, ‘Terrorism and the Abnormality of Sport’.

^7.Boyle and Haggerty, ‘Spectacular Security’.

^8.Coaffee, ‘Strategic Security Planning’ and Bale, ‘Virtual Fandoms’.

^9. Schimmel, ‘Deep Play’.

^10.Richards, ‘Terrorism, the Olympics and Sport’.

^11.Falcous and Silk, ‘Olympic Bidding, Multicultural Nationalism’.

^12.Sugden, ‘Watched by the Games’ and Toohey, Taylor, and Lee, ‘The FIFA World Cup 2002’.

^13.Beck, World Risk Society.

^14. Coaffee, ‘Strategic Security Planning’.

^15.Giulianotti and Klauser, ‘Sport Mega-events and “Terrorism”’.

^16.Jackson, ‘The Core Commitments’ and Jackson, Smyth, and Gunning, Critical Terrorism Studies.

^17.Haggerty and Ericson, ‘The Surveillant Assemblage’.

^18.Toohey and Taylor, ‘Surveillance and Securitization’.

^19.Lyon, ‘Surveillance, Power and Everyday Life’.

^20.Fussey and Coaffee, ‘Balancing Local and Global Security Leitmotifs’; Bruce, I. ‘RAF Drones to be Used for 2012 Olympics Security’, The Herald, January 9, 2008, http://www.heraldscotland.com/raf-drones-to-be-used-for-2012-olympics-security-1.872224

^21. Hassan and O'Kane, ‘Terrorism and the Abnormality of Sport’.

^22.Agamben, State of Exception.

^23.Taylor and Toohey, ‘Impacts of Terrorism-Related Safety’.

^24. Giulianotti and Klauser, ‘Sport Mega-events and “terrorism”’.

^25. Baker, ‘Terrorism’.

^26.Bairner, ‘Soccer, Masculinity, and Violence’.

^27. Fussey and Coaffee, ‘Balancing Local and Global Security Leitmotifs’.

^28. Toohey and Taylor, ‘Surveillance and Securitization’.

^29.Atkinson and Young, ‘Shadowed by the Corpse of War’ and Atkinson and Young, ‘Terror Games’.

^30.Schimmel, ‘Protecting the NFL/Militarizing the Homeland’ and Schimmel, ‘Deep Play’.