In the long term, the International Olympic Committee must seek alternative solutions, using its traditionally high moral values and a return to the roots of the games in ancient Greece – the Olympic Truce.
As concern shifts from delays in the construction schedule to the threat of terrorist attack, the Greek government does not need to be reminded that these are the first summer games since September 11 2001 and the first major global sporting event since the Iraq war. As Public Order Minister Giorgis Voulgarakis has said: ‘Today we can tell the international community that Greece has done all that is humanly possible to ensure security at the games.’
The sceptical British media response has suggested that if Greece has difficulty building athletic stadiums on time, it has a poor chance of foiling international terrorist networks which have already left the United States security services looking flat-footed.
