Summary: In this episode of Third Wave Urbanism, we talk about the Olympics in Rio and the urban design surrounding it and other Olympic events. The Olympics are great for their globalization efforts, raising awareness of diverse women in sports, and generally providing a platform for friendly competition. But with all of the failures in city infrastructure and the cost of creating megastructures that are used only for this event - while negating the everyday issues the rest of its citizens face - we wonder: will this ever be successful urban design? Should there be a permanent location for the Olympics instead? And what about other sports stadiums in cities that are built with otherwise equally good intentions? Here's our take on it, along with some of our sports-related experiences as well. For more commentary, read up on the following articles we also used as reference: Olympics staying put rather than moving around: http://www.citylab.com/design/2016/08/what-if-the-olympics-stayed-put/494792/?utm_source=nl__link2_080816 Rio Olympics tech investment: http://www.citylab.com/design/2016/08/will-rio-be-a-smarter-city-after-the-olympic-games/494912/?utm_source=nl__link3_080916 Urban design: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/architecture-design-blog/2016/aug/09/is-rio-olympic-architecture-a-success Favelas: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2016/aug/02/rio-olympics-view-from-the-favelas-alemao-the-only-olympic-legacy-i-see-is-repression Bike infrastructure collapse: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/apr/21/rio-de-janeiro-bicycle-path-collapse-death-brazil-olympic-games Ancient Greece: http://www.pri.org/stories/2016-08-05/ancient-olympics-were-dirty-violent-corrupt-affairs-there-was-even-regular-doping Transforming Olympic architecture: http://www.fastcoexist.com/3062615/these-olympic-venues-are-designed-to-transform-into-schools-after-the-games Ikea’s London Olympics buildings: http://tegenlicht.vpro.nl/nieuws/inti/Strand-East.html http://www.fastcoexist.com/1680442/ikea-continues-planning-its-empire-of-sustainable-city-districts Abandoned Olympic venues: http://mashable.com/2016/08/10/abandoned-olympic-venues/#BTnMhcjORqqt Montreal's stadium: http://www.citylab.com/design/2016/08/montreal-olympic-stadium-revitalization/495437/ Health issues and Zika virus: http://www.citylab.com/work/2016/08/why-the-rio-2016-games-is-bad-for-athletes-health-zika/493925/ Compilation of CityLab articles on Rio: http://www.citylab.com/special-report/eye-on-rio/ Sustainability issues in Rio: http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/olympics/2016-rio-olympics-water-feces-athletes-mouth-shut-brazil-a7163021.html Protests and Political climate: http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/olympics/rio-2016-olympic-protesters-tear-gas-police-brazil-a7175271.html
