Turin's Budget Crisis

The Italian government has promised to make up the $196M budget shortfall on the 2006 Turin Olympics.



Oddly enough the International Olympic Committee executive board will visit Turin, on Thursday and Friday, one year before the games begin.



Cabinet Undersecretary Gianni Letta's office said:



"We must guarantee the success of Turin 2006 and everything will be done through a very good and healthy administration, which will be inspired by transparency and by accounting and managing rigour..".



The Turin organising committee has been desperately looking for a solution to the budget shortfall, in the overall budget of $1.5BN, which is due mainly to a lack of support from Italian state-owned companies.



The IOC has repeatedly pressed the Italian government to help. However, as a private foundation, the committee is prevented by state law from receiving government subsidies.



This provides yet another object lesson, if one were ever needed, in proving that no one makes money out of the Olympics; apart from the IOC, certain gold medal winners and certain multi nationals.