This thesis will try to delineate and extrapolate a mode for consideration of project management in practice, with particular emphasis upon both the political, institutional and commercial aspects of project management practices of the Olympic Games. The research will produce a project management framework identifying relevant variables for the success organisation of the Olympic Games project. ' .. The writer examines the Olympic Games as a project in two case studies: The Atlanta and Athens Games are analysed with respect to various criteria such as the political and administrative structure, finances and the outcomes or multiplier effects that have- come about as a result of the Olympics. What is really important in the organisation of the Games, why there is not stability, what are the typical difficulties encountered, etc. are' questions that the thesis examines through reference to project management theory. The 1996 and 2004 case studies allowed the writer to look at the organisation of the Olympics with particular attention to the practicalities of their realisation and in the process see things that otherwise might not have been seen. The two case studies focus on specific dimensions (project management approaches/techniques used, commercial aspects, political dimensions and logistical subproject requirements), which are compared consistently across both cases. The thesis is an attempt to analyse the Organising Committee's (Project Manager) role to develop a co-operative relationship with all parties (Host City _ authorities, local community, government, the IOC, etc.) involved in the Olympic Games organisation to fully explore the potentials of the project. Its involvement is required at all stages of the 11 " project, from the identification of needs to the design, and implementation of arrangements to satisfy them. The Olympic Games, as a project, takes a certain level of development, infrastructure, and resources. Accommodation, construction, transportation, technology and security are the main challenges that most Organising Committees face. The Olympic Games have appeared as one of the central discursive resources for representing reality, be it political, economic or social. III I

Research into sports mega-events, of which the Olympics is the modern archetype, has often focused on the macro-economic and regional economic effects of hosting the Games. This research suggests that the local promoters and organisers of the event seldom, if ever, fulfil their promises. Drawing upon sport management, economic, and socio-historical analyses this thesis examines the economic trends and activities that occur within the business enterprises that are associated directly and indirectly with the Olympic Games. The thesis examines the commercial strength of the Olympic brand and how the brand has managed to evolve from being an instrument of peace and goodwill to a transnational nongovernmental commercial giant of imposing power and influence. The thesis provides an overview of the historical relationship between business and the Olympics and specifically analyses how business has engaged with the Olympics since the 1980s. Using London 2012 as a case study it attempts to assess how far London 2012 was good for business in the UK by examining the published accounts of the sponsors and suppliers of the Games. It also assesses the regional impact of the Games by looking at small and medium sized business enterprises (SMEs) in the south-east and the north-west. The results suggest that claims for a positive business impact from the Olympic Games are largely unwarranted. While the Olympics can be a catalyst for economic change, it should be viewed as a singular investment within a broader strategy for development. As a single event, the Olympics cannot guarantee a widespread economic impact on either major corporations or SMEs.

This study identifies the characteristics of seven key principles of good/corporate governance at three levels: as notions that originated in business; in their applications to sport through systematic review; and in relation to the interpretations given to them in the Olympic Movement. The aims of this study are, thus, to establish and utilise the IOC s definitions/interpretations and operationalisations of corporate and/or good governance developed in a western framework and apply to a non-western NOC, the Korean Olympic Committee (KOC). This study adopts critical realist assumptions which give rise to the hypothesis that both the regularities of the Korean society and its unobservable social structures have an impact on the corporate governance of the KOC. It also uses Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to examine each interviewee s discourse in order to identify the knowledge embraced by it and to interpret social practice(s) and the exercise of power. CDA is employed in relation to four selected events follows: the KOC/KSC merger, budgetary planning, the recruitment of staff in terms of gender and disability equity and the processes used for selecting the KOC President and the Chef de Mission. The unobservable deep structure is shown to be real domain in Korean society by the social practices exhibited in the four events. The government and, in particular, the State President represent the highest and most influential authority in decision-making on Korean sports policy. That power relationship coupled with the pre-existing structure of the KOC/KSC s financial dependency on the government has resulted in a situation where the government has been able to interfere greatly in the KOC/KSC s overall decision-making on sports policy including the election of the President of the KOC. The KOC/KSC President is the most influential stakeholder in the decision-making within the organisation including the selection of Chef de Mission. As the pre-existing structure of cultural expectations determines that women should usually quit their jobs after marriage and that people with disabilities are incapable of working, the strongly male with abilities-dominated organisational culture has resulted in a social phenomenon whereby few females or people with impairments have succeeded in being promoted to senior positions. From the macro-level perspective, the first KOC/KSC merger accomplished on the orders of the State President shows the dominance of economic power as suggested in Marxist influenced forms of analysis. The incumbent KOC President, who is at the pinnacle of the business elite, contributed to the KOC/KSC merger, which illustrates the aspect of elitism. In connection with the budgetary process, this may be viewed as evidence of the existence of a neo-corporatist structure in which the state plays a central role and acts in a unitary way with the involvement of a limited number of actors. With respect to the meso-level perspective, the aspect of clientelism is exhibited since the government habitually appoints its political aides to be the heads of various sporting organisations. Concerning political governance, it becomes obvious that the government has direct control over KOC/KSC s policy. In terms of systemic governance, the relations among the domestic stakeholders of the KOC are more likely to follow a hierarchical type of governance, as the government has adopted the highest position and the National Federations are under the control of the KOC/KSC. With reference to Lukes (1974) second dimension of power this can be evidenced in the context of the non-decision making roles of women and the disabled. The IOC s interpretations of the key principles of corporate governance in a western framework are applied to the KOC. Accountability, responsibility, transparency and democracy are established but the KOC s governance practices are not equivalent, while effectiveness and efficiency are interpreted as the same ways of the IOC s. In general, power centralisation is apparent throughout the Korean cultural context. The KOC s power structure and organisational culture is likely to be concentrated to the KOC President within the organisation and broadly, the Korean government enjoys its power centralisation decision-making in the Korean context which gives rise to a peculiarly Korean way of interpreting and applying the principles of corporate governance. In such circumstances, nevertheless, where the KOC is making an effort to align its practices with the IOC s recommendations as much as possible, the indication is that the KOC is on course to reflect the IOC s governance practices.