For the past week, the eyes of the world have been on the Olympics in Tokyo. Japan.This Olympiad was special because, even though it was called the 2020 Olympics,  it is being held in 2021 owing to the 2020 Coronavirus Pandemic which shut down global sporting  activity.The Olympics have become perhaps the biggest global event in which  every country in the world seeks to participate. This was no exception as some 11,000 global citizens became Olympians.

The Olympics,as an event, is an occasion when the world has the opportunity to watch global citizens display their athletic prowess in some 33 sports. The main difference is that these 33 sports take place at one venue over a two week period.It is this environment that attracts a worldwide media that generates advertising in the billions of dollars.Further,it is a highly profitable undertaking for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) which has been around since 1894 and serves as the governing body for National Olympic Committees or Associations.

One of the key benefits of IOC membership for small island states like those in the Caribbean is that it provides funding to local Olympic committees/ associations from the revenue derived from hosting the Olympic Games to enhance the development of Olympic sports as well as providing training for administrators, coaches and athletes.