[bane]

I'm not sure what country you're in, but in the U.S. the problem is in how it's broadcast now. The broadcast rights never should have been sold exclusively for such a long time and NBC is a terrible steward of sports and the Olympics in general for many years. The truth is though that the heart of the problem is the IOC, who agreed to these kinds of deals.

To me the Olympics used to be about the discovery of heroes, as they emerged through the greatest competition in their event that the planet could put together. Great moments of sportsmanship and overcoming what most people think are limitations of the human body. There was always a sense of discovery and the pioneering of new horizons in the events.

Now it's about making and manufacturing "heroes", with commercial deals going out to athletes years before they're ever even proven to be winners. Selective broadcasts, 30 minute human interest stories, commercials commercials commercials commercials, and after the games branding tie ins. Athletes used to be "Olympic gold medalist!" now they're just celebs with less clout than the many "influencers" who aren't known for having much talent in anything in particular.

edit I just heard the phrase "industrial sports" applied to the problem and couldn't agree more.