The host city loses lots of money. A bunch of “connected” people make LOTS of money. It’s how things go.
At the very top of “the Movement” sits the International Olympic Committee, a nonprofit run by a “volunteer” president who gets an annual “allowance” of $251,000 and lives rent-free in a five-star hotel and spa in Switzerland.
USA Swimming Executive Director Chuck Wielgus makes $854,000, and national swim team director Frank Busch makes $346,000; their swimmers competing in Rio next month can make monthly stipends that cap at $42,000 per year. USA Triathlon CEO Rob Urbach makes $362,000 while Team USA triathletes compete for stipends that range from about $20,000 to $40,000 a year. The coach of the USA Rowing women’s team makes $237,000 while his rowers vie for stipends that max out at about $20,000 per year. (U.S. Olympic athletes are given an additional stipend if they win a gold, silver or bronze medal.)...
The IOC and dozens of international sports federations are headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland — also known as “the Olympic capital” — a city that offers beautiful mountain vistas in a country that has legally enshrined financial privacy protections.
Unlike in the States, nonprofits in Switzerland are not legally required to publicly disclose information about how they spend their money.
When on IOC business, members fly first-class, stay in luxury hotels, and also get cash per diems: $450 per day for regular IOC members, $900 per day for the IOC’s executive committee.