Meanwhile, American network NBC-TV has posted an unspecified loss for its involvement in this year's Olympics. NBC paid $894 million to beam the images of Beijing 2008 back to the United States, and had earlier claimed $1 billion in advertising revenues from Beijing. With operating expenses decreased thanks to remote hosting and BOB's excellent coverage, this is likely a strategic loss.

The massive television rights fees that American networks pay are, undoubtedly, what has helped the Olympic Movement escape its low-budget ebb in the 1960's and 1970's and ushered in an age of Gigantic Games that began with Los Angeles 1984. The chief of that organizing committee, Peter Ueberroth, went on to become the chairman of the United States Olympic Committee, a position he recently relinquished. In his final speech as president, he made prominent mention of the United States' contributions to the cause.

"Who pays the bill for the world Olympic movement?" Ueberroth said Saturday in his final speech as USOC chairman. "Make no mistake about it. Starting in 1988, U.S. corporations have paid 60 percent of all the money, period. Be sure you all understand that. The rest of the world pays 40 percent. It's pretty simple math."

Ueberroth's comments were in response to June statements by IOC officials that the USOC receives an "immoral amount of [Olympic revenues] compared to what other people get." "Who do they think they are?" asked Hein Verbruggen of the Netherlands. Either way, any IOC-USOC rift could damage the chances of Chicago's candidacy for hosting duties in 2016.

In competition news, more specifically doping developments, the IOC announced last week that it will keep all drug testing samples from 2008 until those 2016 Games are held. The IOC will also retest every sample it collected during the Beijing Olympics to check for a recently discovered blood-boosting drug named CERA, or Continuous Erythropoiesis Receptor Activator. It's believed that the drug is gaining favor with endurance athletes who are ditching the now-easily detectable EPO.

The governing body took 4,770 samples (3,801 urine and 969 blood) during the three weeks it superceded all sporting organizations. Six humans failed those tests.

"Our message is very clear. The IOC will not miss any opportunity to further analyse samples retroactively. We hope that this will work as a strong deterrent and make athletes think twice before cheating," said IOC President Jacques Rogge.

The vice president of the IOC, Thomas Bach, also has threatened to remove men's road cycling from the Olympic menu due to its long and growing history of EPO and CERA abuse.

It was definitely a busy week for the Olympic gatekeepers, as the IOC officially approved the venues for the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia. But the remainder of the world of the Games has been dealing with the rapidly-increasing global financial crisis. The London 2012 organizers have been forced to mull over the idea of cutting back on venue construction, as the credit crunch is "hitting the Olympics hard," according to John Armitt, the chairman of the London Delivery Authority. Temporary venues for basketball and shooting may be scrapped.

Despite current money problems, London mayor Boris Johnson is promising free hand-held television sets to visitors to the 2012 Games. Johnson hopes for an open and fun event, instead of what he refers to as "great soulless piazzas" of Beijing.

Finally, economic problems have sunk the bid of Tromsoe, Norway to host the 2018 Winter Games. It could be argued, successfully so, that the Lillehammer 1994 event marked a turnaround in the fortunes in the Olympic snow and ice festival, proof positive that a winter host city could balance a big budget and small-town warmth.

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