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  3. The cost of staging the year 2000 Olympics in Sydney is estimated to be a staggering $960 million, but the city is preparing to

The cost of staging the year 2000 Olympics in Sydney is estimated to be a staggering $960 million, but the city is preparing to

admin2011-03-05  81
问题     The cost of staging the year 2000 Olympics in Sydney is estimated to be a staggering $960 million, but the city is preparing to reap the financial benefits that ensue from holding such an international event by emulating the commercial success of Los Angeles, the only city yet to have made a demonstrable profit from the Games in 1984. At precisely 4:20 a.m. on Friday the 24th of September 1993, it was announced that Sydney had beaten five other competing cities around the world, and Australians everywhere, not only Sydneysiders, were justifiably proud of the result. But, if Sydney had lost the bid, would the taxpayers of NSW and of Australia have approved of governments spending millions of dollars in a failed and costly exercise?
    There may have been some consolation in the fact that the bid came in $1 million below the revised budget and $5 million below the original budget of $29 million formulated in mid-1991. How ever, the final cost was the considerable sum of $ 24 million, the bulk of which was paid for by corporate and community contributions, merchandising, licensing, and the proceeds of lotteries, with the NSW Government, which had originally been willing to spend up to $10 million, contributing some $ 2 million. The Federal Government’s grant of $ 5 million meant, in effect, that the Sydney bid was financed by every Australian taxpayer.
    Prior to the announcement of the winning city, there was considerable debate about the wisdom of taking financial risks of this kind at a time of economic recession. Others argued that 70 percent of the facilities were already in place, and all were on government-owned ]and, removing some potential areas of conflict which troubled previous Olympic bidders. The former NSW Premier, Mr. Nick Greiner, went on record as saying that the advantage of having the Games... "is not that you are going to have $ 7.4 billion in extra gross domestic product over the next 14 years... I think the real point of the Games is the psychological change, the catalyst of confidence.., apart from the other more obvious reasons, such as the building of sporting facilities, tourism, and things of that nature. "
    However, the dubiousness of the benefits that Melbourne, an unsuccessful bidder for the 1988 Olympic Games, received at a time when the State of Victoria was still in economic turmoil meant many corporate bodies were unenthusiastic.
    There is no doubt that Sydney’s seductive physical charms caused the world’s media to compare the city favorably to its rivals Beijing, Berlin, Manchester, and Istanbul. Mr. Godfrey Santer, the Australian Tourist Commission’s Manager of Corporate Planning Services, stated that soon after the bid was made, intense media locus was already having a beneficial effect on in-bound tourism.
    Developers and those responsible for community development projects eagerly pointed to the improvements taking place to the existing infrastructure of the city, the creation of employment, and especially the building of sporting facilities, all of which meet the needs of the community and help to attract more tourists. At Homebush Bay $ 300 million was spent providing the twin athletic arenas and the "high-tech" Aquatic Centre. However, perhaps the most impressive legacy was the new attitude shown towards both industrial relations and environmental problems. The high-profile nature of the bid; and the perception that it must proceed smoothly Created a unique attitude of co-operation between the workforce and employers involved in the construction of the Olympic Village at Homebush Bay. The improvements included the lack of strikes, the breaking down of demarkation barriers, and the completion of projects within budget and ahead of time.
The bid for the Games was made during ______.
选项
答案a time of economic recession
解析 (第三段第一句提到Prior to the announcement of the winning city, …at a time of economic recession.，可见悉尼申办奥运会时正值经济不景气时期。)
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