The Rings and The Bear: How The IOC Could Help Save Georgia From The Russians

The Olympics represent a grand unifying of three of the most power forces in the world: sports, politics, and religion.

The religion piece has fallen out of favor since the games moved out of Greece, but if the opening ceremonies didn't feel just a little bit like a religious festival to you, go back and watch them again, all the necessary parts are there.

The other two pieces, sports and politics, are almost inseparable at times. The Chinese gymnasts who may or may not still believe in the Tooth Fairy and think that Father Christmas delivered their gold medals had to have significant help from the Chinese state to even compete in these games and not, say, the 2016 games, where ever they may be.

This intermingling of interests makes organizations like the IOC and FIFA almost as powerful as NATO and the UN in solving international issues. Through the use of soft power, a gentle pushing from some of sports' most influential people can change the course of even the most chaotic of circumstances.

Take, for example, the massive voter fraud in Zimbabwe earlier this year. The crisis had nothing to do with sports, and yet FIFA should get much of the credit if the situation is ever resolved.

Why?

Simple, FIFA had a huge amount of leverage over South Africa, Zimbabwe's neighbor to the south.

Since the 2010 World Cup is to be held in Cape Town, Johannesburg, and other cities across South Africa, FIFA simply sent a message to the powers-that-be that due to ongoing instability in the region and lack of construction on stadia, three other sites were being considered for the games.

Moving Africa's first World Cup out of the continent would come as a massive slap in the face to everyone who worked so hard to convince FIFA that Africa should have the cup and that South Africa had the infrastructure to hold it.

While FIFA’s move didn’t solve the situation right away, it ramped up pressure on both the government of South Africa and the rest of the African nations to spur Zimbabwe into reforms.

The same principle would hold in Russia.

Plans for the 2012 games in Sochi, Russia are already well on their way. It will be the first time Russia has held the games since the 1980 Summer games, which was notable mostly for the US led boycott.

If Russia continues to destabilize the region (Sochi lies just over 50 miles from the disputed area of Abkhazia) there is a real risk that separatist violence could endanger athletes in the games.

Russia is still making its way as a democracy and deeply desires to hold the games for the very same reasons China wanted so badly to host these games and why they bent over backwards to cater to Western viewers. The Olympics are, by their nature, a way for a traditionally closed country to showcase their finest features to the world.

While Russia will not be forced to choose directly between regional hegemony and hosting the games, the IOC can add its considerable weight to the many other organizations who are voicing concern over Russia’s incursion into its former satellite.

As with FIFA in Africa, it would be foolish to think that the IOC can suddenly change the course of world politics.

However, after turning a blind eye to the human rights debacle in China, a statement condemning aggressive actions so near the future site of one of the world’s greatest shared events could help stem the  violence, all while keeping the IOC from actually taking the political stance they seem to detest.