Quadrennial International Sporting Event (QISE) Review - Rio Edition - Day Negative 1 / by Mark

Citius, Altius, Zikius.

It seems like only two years ago when I covered QISE for the last Winter Games, but here we are again.  (I am avoiding the O-word as to not annoy the QISE Organizing Committee’s attorneys).  As before, I will concentrate on the spectacle and media over the actual events—you can get coverage for that anywhere.  It’s all about the ceremony, the histrionics, the commercials, and how the Peacock network, desperate for a hit, can pull in the viewers.

We are still cord cutters, so the 260 hours of network coverage will have to suffice, along with whatever online stuff I can get. There’s also social networks, which have only become more powerful.

You can expect controversies and scandals surrounding any QISE, but we have a bumper crop in Rio.  The Zika virus, polluted water, unfit athlete housing, rampant crime, a failing local economy, plus the normal corruption that seems to follow the event.  Let’s see if they can pull it off.


Tomorrow—let the games begin! (I know some events have already started, but…)