Olympics: Athens 2004

The Atmosphere in Athens

What can visitors and athletes expect for the 2004 Olympic Games held in Athens, Greece?

Greek Ambassador to the United States George V. Savvaides has just returned from a monthlong visit in Athens. Join him online Tuesday, Aug. 10, at Noon ET to discuss the atmosphere in Greece in anticipation of the summer games.

Ambassador Savvaides has had a long, distinguished career in foreign affairs. He first joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece in 1972. He has held a variety of posts including Consul General in Skopje, director of the Department on Bilateral Relations with Turkey and Cyprus, permanent representative of Greece to NATO and Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 2002, he was made Ambassador of Greece to the U.S.

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West Bethesda, Md.: K. Savvaide, kalimera sas! My parents just returned from Greece and they tell me everything is finished and looks fantastic! My question is what can we expect from the opening ceremonies? Will there be an emphasis on the heritage of ancient and modern Greece, as well as elements from modern global culture?

Ambassador Savvaides: Good afternoon. The Opening Ceremonies will incorporate elements from both ancient and modern Greece. There have been two rehearsals, but they are closed to the public and for organizers and volunteers only. One was last weekend and drew 20,000 people. The final rehearsal is tonight and 70,000 people are expected. The well-known director Greek Dimitri Papaioannou is going to be the director of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies.

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Wheaton, Md.: Who are the Greek medal hopefuls? Will the whole city be attending the games and will there be televised coverage for the city? Is the excitement only contained in Greece or throughout Europe?

Ambassador Savvaides: Yes, there are medal hopefuls for Greece. Greece is expecting to receive a numbe of medals in a variety of sports. It's only natural that the baseline is the number of medals in Sydney in 2000 where we won 13 medals in all. Most of them come from athletic events like weighlifting, gymnastics and track and field. We sincerely hope that the number will increase this time in Athens. There have already been some articles in the international press (in yesterday's Financial Times, for example) that are giving rough estimates of the number of medals countries may be receiving. The FT article presented Greece winning many more medals in Athens than in Sydney.

There is going to be vast TV coverage, not only for the whole city, but for the entire country. The national broadast radio/TV (ERT) has the exclusive rights to present the entire Games in Greece. The Olympics organizing committee has a number of agreement with a number of similiar organizations across the globe for similiar coverage across the world. In the U.S., NBC has the right. Of course the number of hours to be provided in Athens, will be much, much bigger with respect to other Olympic Games. More than 300 networks will be providing footage from Athens. While total coverage is expected to exceed 35,000 hours which translates to about 2,000 hrs a day. To enable comparisons to be made, 29,600 hours had been broadcast from the Sydney Games in 2000. During the Games in Barcelona in 1992, the corresponding number had been 20,000 hours. These figures are from the IOC (International Olympic Committee)which leads us to the conclusion that the TV coverage of the Games is expected to break records from all points of view. Of course, all in all, over 3.9 billion people are expected to watch the Athens Olympic games across the globe on TV.

As for the excitement, it is generalized. Of course, Greeks are excited because the Games are returning to the country that gave them birth nearly 3000 years ago. Of course, the Olympic Games is not just a Greek business. It is a cultural event of global dimensions. Of course, Europe is also excited that the Games are taking place not only in a European country, but in the country of their origin. A factor that contributed to that excitement is the decision by the Athens 2004 Organizing Committee to send the Olympic flame around the globe for the first time. When I say for the first time, I mean the countries of Africa and Latin America which never in the past have seen the Olympic flame. That decision which underlines the global dimension and effect also of the Olympic Games is also greatly contributing to a feeling of participation and a feeling of involvement by the international community which is very important in similiar events of such nature and importance.

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St. Louis, Missouri: How may visitors from outside Greece are expected to travel to Athens for the Olympics?

Ambassador Savvaides: The figure is not final. We expect approximately 150,000 to 200,000 people watching the Games daily in Athens. But we don't have concrete numbers of watchers because at this time of the year, Greece is already a major foreign tourist destination, something that makes the calculation of an exact figure even more difficult. In recent days, there has been a real increase in interest from people abroad to buy tickets. Yesterday, 80,000 tickets were sold in one single day. At this point, 3 days before the official opening of the Games, the omens are quite promising that the total number of tickets will be sold by Friday or subsequent days of various athletic events.

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Washington, D.C.: Have preparations for the Olympic Games pretty much been finalized? For someone attending the games, what advice would you give in terms of what they can or cannot bring? Also, will there be security to cover anything from petty thieves to evacuation procedures?

Ambassador Savvaides: Everything is ready. All of the major infastructure projects have also been delivered to the public and the IOC. What I mean specifically, the suburban railway that links Athens with a new international airport that had been opened three years ago. The new route around Athens (70 km in length) is complete. It had previously had only been delivered in parts. Now, it's fully operational. The new tram system is also ready and operational. A number of extensions of the existing subway stations are done. The last one was delivered yesterday. I hope I didn't miss any of the important infrastructure projects which are important not just for the Games, but are all important legacies for the city of Athens which will make full use of them during and after the 2004 Olympics.

As a suggestion, I can say there are specific rules that apply to people that will enter the Olympic venues. The rules pertain to the need to protect fully the security of spectators and athletes and of course, the smooth conduct of the athletic event. These rules are imposed by the IOC, not Greece. For example, no one can bring in any metal objects, banners or bars...anything of a threatening nature. There is a going to be security checks in all entrances of all Olympic venues. As far as security in general is concerned, this has been one of the main priorities of the Olympic preparation. It has been fully taken care of. There is an Olympic security plan approved by the IOC, which is already in place. It provides for all eventualities, even the most remote ones. We are confident that it will fully, fully, meet the security needs of the forthcoming Games. To give you just an idea of the financial aspect of this security plan, I can mention its cost of 1.2 billion U.S dollars, four times the corresponding cost of Olympic security in Sydney in 2000 or in Salt Lake City in 2002.

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Beltsville, Md.: Have the bombings in Turkey put security on edge even more than they already are?

Ambassador Savvaides: It is true that the Olympic security plan that I have already mentioned is taking full account of the evolving security situation worldwide, including, of course the 9/11 events and also the entire international situation as it evolves in recent months. As far as Turkey is concerned, I can also add that that Greek security authorities are in close cooperation with their counter-parts in all neighboring countries to avoid any possibility of unpleasant situations occuring in Greece during the Games. Of course, I would stress the fact that during the long Olympic prepatory phase in Greece, we happily didn't have the occurence of similiar situations in Greece.

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20009: Will there be any events held in the Western Peloponnesus--the most beautiful part of Greece, in my opinion--near Olympia? Also, do you expect the Greek people's attitudes/feelings toward some country's politics--I'm thinking USA, Turkey or Israel--to effect the reception of athletes at the Games?

Thanks.

Ambassador Savvaides: Yes, I have some good news to report in this respect. Following permission of the IOC, the event of the shot put, both men and women, will take place in the stadium of Ancient Olympia. This is going to be the first time that this stadium will be used for athletic purposes since the year 393 A.D. when the ancient Olympic Games were held for the last time. Of course, it's going to be the first case ever when women will be permitted to use that particular stadium in Ancient Olympia. So, this decision again, by the IOC following a request by the 2004 Organizing Committee demonstrates, I believe in the most clear way the desire of Greece to organize not just successful athletic events, in the framebook of the Olympic Games, but to link them as much as possible with the ancient tradition.

As for politics, I'm not expecting any feelings that might provide a picture of Greeks not being good hosts. Greeks are fully cognizant of the fact that the Games are coming home 100 years following the first occassion after 1896. They are determined to act in a responsible, friendly and hospitable manner so as to show that the event is not befallen by any expressions of feelings against anybody.

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Harrisburg, Pa.: How true is it that there are Olympic tickets and hotel spaces left? Is it possible for last minute travelers to make it to the Olympics and have a good time there?

Ambassador Savvaides: I would say yes. Despite the fact that the tickets are being sold at a very fast pace, as I already mentioned, no one can guarantee their availability until the last moment. I would submit that there is always time in terms of accomodation, availabilities or tickets purchases, especially if there is not a very exclusive choice for a particular event for someone to decide to come to Athens and enjoy the Games. He or she certainly has to make their plans very quickly and act accordingly.

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Arlington, Va.: Your nation deserves great congratulations!; The Olympic Games look like they will be lovely and memorable. I am hoping and praying for peace and security during the Games, and I am looking forward to a spectacular show from the people of Greece.

P.S. Who chose those mascots?

Ambassador Savvaides: We have chosen 2 mascots, we call them Athena and Phevos. In ancient Greece, these dolls, known also as "Daidala" were not only children's toys, but also had a religious significance, as is evident from the religious symbols depicted on them. They also had a significance related to fertility. Such references exist from the days of Homer and Hesiodus. In the course of time, the religious aspect slowly disappeared. Today, one such terra cotta doll is exhibited in the Athens archaelogical museum, while similar ones are exhibited in the Louvre in Paris and in museums in Boston and Berlin. The oldest Greek dolls date from the 7th B.C.

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Chicago, Ill.: I have read that the air pollution of Athens is such that
some atheletes may have problems (such as exacerbation
of asthma). How bad is the air pollution of the city? I
have also read that it has been so bad that it has caused
damage to some of the ancient ruins of the Acropolis.

Ambassador Savvaides: All of this belong to the past. This is history. The Athens pollution levels are now similiar to those existing in other European cities. I should also add that thanks to the new infrastructure related to the Olympic Games, which immensely facilitated traffic in Athens, combined with the much better quality of gasoline used by motorists also by the gradual encouragement of Athenian motorists to use more of the new available means of mass transport in Athens, the level of overall pollution in Athens is being reduced by approximately 30 percent. This figure again points to beneficial aspects that the hosting of the Games is bringing to the city of Athens.

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Washington, DC: What effect had the fact that Greece won the European championship in Soccer on the preparations for the Olympics?

Ambassador Savvaides: I do not see any effect on the preparation of the Olympics itself. Preparations were already evolving smoothly before the Championships. Of course, it concluded successfully on-time for the Games. Certainly, it had a beneficial effect on the image of Greece in Europe and abroad in general which projected a country that is capable of assuming not only important organizational responsibilities, like those of hosting Olympic Games, but also a country that despite its size, can be a winner in very important athletic competitions, as it is the case w/the recent European Soccer Championship.

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Ambassador Savvaides: Greece in 1997 assumed the very important responsiblity of hosting the 2004 Olympic Games in full cognizance of the difficulty of the exercise, not only from its organizational, but also from its symbolic point of views. That exercise is now proud and happy to have prepared fully and it rightfully expected to be successful, secure and enjoyable for all. We sincerely hope that the Athens Olympic Games will provide a quality standard for future Olympians because no one cares more for the future of the Olympic Games than the Greeks, who invented them nearly 3000 years ago and who are caring most for its success and future. This is exactly the message and also the real meaning of the contribution of Greece to the world on this very important occassion.

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washingtonpost.com: Thank you for joining us for this discussion. Continue to log-on to washingtonpost.com for more discussions from Athens on the 2004 Olympic Games.

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