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The dangers of sportswashing for the Olympics
Should there be a limit on foreign investment in professional sports? Sportswashing—when a government uses sports to improve its country’s reputation, distract from human rights abuses, or political controversies—has become a major problem in athletics and pro sports. But can governments do anything to stop it?
Washington Post sports columnist Sally Jenkins joined Ian Bremmer on GZERO World ahead of the Olympic Games in Paris to talk about politics, sports and how they overlap. Saudi Arabia has invested billions of dollars in the last few years in sports like golf and tennis to help burnish its global reputation as a modern, forward-looking country. Sportswashing isn’t just a moral issue but also a political one, Jenkins points out, because the more foreign money that gets entangled in domestic companies, the more difficult it is for governments to draw a red line. Jenkin also addresses the NBA’s complex relationship with China on issues like Hong Kong, another example of how financial ties can lead to compromising on democratic values, a position Jenkins calls “the anaconda in the chandelier.”
Watch full episode: The politics of the Paris Olympics
Season 7 of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the award-winning weekly global affairs series, launches nationwide on public television stations (check local listings).
New digital episodes of GZERO World are released every Monday on YouTube. Don''t miss an episode: subscribe to GZERO's YouTube channel and turn on notifications (🔔).
Could the Olympics ever be free of politics?
Should politics play a role at the Olympic Games? The International Olympic Committee insists the Games are non-political, but in practice, that’s never really been the case. From boycotts to political protests to national scandals, politics always loom large at the Olympics, and the 2024 Paris Games are no exception.
Washington Post sports columnist Sally Jenkins joins Ian Bremmer on GZERO World to talk about how politics and sports overlap at the Olympics and beyond, including the IOC’s troubling coziness with authoritarian countries like China and Russia. Jenkins points to the Olympic Truce and the history of international cooperation at the Games but also stresses that this Olympics is taking place amid one of the most divisive political eras in decades. Despite the controversies and geopolitical tensions at the games, she says it is the athletes themselves that “scrape the grime” off the Games and make them so inspiring. The effort and commitment to compete after training for four years, she says, is one of the “great competitive miracles we all get to watch.”
Season 7 of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the award-winning weekly global affairs series, launches nationwide on public television stations (check local listings).
New digital episodes of GZERO World are released every Monday on YouTube. Don''t miss an episode: subscribe to GZERO's YouTube channel and turn on notifications (🔔).
The politics of the Paris Olympics
As the political drama ramps up in the US, Democrats have acted with remarkable speed and solidarity to pass the torch to VP Kamala Harris. At the same time, the world’s most elite athletes are gathering along the Seine in Paris to light a more literal torch, of the Olympic variety.
Washington Post sports columnist Sally Jenkins joins Ian Bremmer on GZERO World to talk about some of the biggest stories leading into the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, including security challenges, the ban on Russia’s Olympic Committee due to the war in Ukraine, and growing calls for reform within the IOC, which has faced accusations of corruption and bid rigging in recent years. The IOC insists the Games aren’t political, but in practice, that’s never really been the case. This year, a doping scandal involving Chinese swimmers, Russian disinformation, and mounting calls for Israeli athletes to compete under a neutral flag threaten to overshadow the City of Light’s big celebration. Jenkins and Bremmer also dig into Saudi sportswashing, China’s relationship with pro sports teams in the US, and the WNBA’s most-watched season in history.
Season 7 of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the award-winning weekly global affairs series, launches nationwide on public television stations (check local listings).
New digital episodes of GZERO World are released every Monday on YouTube. Don''t miss an episode: subscribe to GZERO's YouTube channel and turn on notifications (🔔).