Olympic Numbers

ATLANTA: The numbers are starting to come in, and the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games is breathing a collective sigh of relief with the news that the games will probably turn a slim profit. Financed almost entirely through private sponsorship, the games had come under enough fire for their crass commercialism that the IOC decided to recommend that future games be financed by a mixture of public and private funds. In Atlanta, the games had almost no public guarantees, meaning that ACOG would be responsible for any shortfall. After optimistically predicting large profits in the months before the games, ACOG officials had toned-down their expectations when costs exceeded projections and the games began with organizers still needing to raise about $100 million of the event's projected $1.7 billion tab. But surprisingly strong sales of tickets, souvenirs and refreshments and a profit-sharing agreement with NBC helped nudge the games into the black. -->