The Culture Wars of the Montreal Olympics

Abstract

The Montreal Olympics are often remembered for their extravagant mismanagement and unfulfilled expectations, usually attributed to the city's flamboyant Mayor Drapeau. But this paper argues that the difficulties of the Montreal organizers must be understood in the context of a bitter clash of nationalisms and a deep-rooted debate about the purposes of sport, both of which served to divide the governments responsible for funding Canadian sport and undermine public confidence in the Games. The events themselves were quite successful, and the social investment in staging them contributed significantly to the long- term development of sports and fitness in many parts of Canada, but those accomplishments continue to be clouded by the contending nationalisms. While the Montreal Games created a brief moment of festive intercultural celebration, they did not unblock the dominant cultural rigidities of the host community.