I don't know, John.

I don't think the money spent was the only reason the Games were seen as a success. Money can't buy a friendly atmosphere, which was the big thing visiting media people in Sydney remarked upon.

Sure, you must be vexed to see your tax dollars going to subsidise an event you can't afford to attend. But the big thing that came across was what Lena talks about above, the crowds watching downtown on the giant screens and the general involvement of the public in creating a feelgood factor throughout the city.

Sydney came across to the world as the beautiful place it is, as sophisticated, cosmopolitan and, above all, a friendly place to visit. You can't calculate the future worth to Sydney and to Australia of that kind of publicity world wide.

I agree with you, on the other hand, about spending big bucks on trying to win medals purely for the sake of it, for the reasons I gave in my earlier post. Public spending on sport should be about encouraging and facilitating everyone to take some exercise, not about gaining nationalistic prestige through success at elite level, at God knows what cost to the health and balance of the individuals involved.