Transcript: Joel Finlay on sporting infrastructure (Sept 1st, 2010)
Major infrastructure projects rarely progress at any great pace but if there is one thing that can act as a catalyst for speeding things up, it is the award of a major international multi-sport event.
In fact, I believe it may now be the single most reliable way of fast-tracking infrastructure improvements and circumventing political deadlock.
Unsurprisingly, this fact is not lost on any savvy government around the world and goes some way to explaining why so many countries (and cities) are so keen to host these events.
However, these games projects are growing ever more vast – with expectations being ramped up as each organizer tries to out-perform their predecessor.
That is why I believe there may yet come a tipping point at which even the accelerated delivery of shiny new infrastructure assets is not worth the enormous investment of time and money.
Sadly, while major sports events may guarantee progress on infrastructure projects, they do not guarantee the sustainable, commercial success of such projects.
Failure in this regard often stems from a lack of integration between sporting and civic infrastructure – and this is something that organizers must pay more attention to.
I think we should however accept that not all sport venues can be sustainable. That’s why I believe that greater use of temporary facilities should be considered – or modular facilities that can be disassembled and relocated elsewhere after a games has been completed.
This is an unpopular view though as it sits uneasily with the talk of leaving behind a legacy and being seen to wow the world with quality venues.
It’s fascinating to see the manner in which the award of a major international sporting event can cause political concerns to be put aside in favour of simply getting things done.
It is a case of sport succeeding where politics could not. However, this sporting ‘uber-catalyst’ comes at a price as – from the outset – the sheer complexity and scale of what lies beyond that award can be difficult to comprehend.
Joel Finlay is part of KPMG’s Global Infrastructure Group