Germany navigates Nazi games anniversary as it prepares to launch Olympic hosting bid
Germany’s Olympic hopes received a major boost last month when the government threw its support behind hosting the event — but the memory of the 1936 games looms large.
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00:00This could be the centerpiece of Germany's Olympic bid, but also symbolic of the controversy
00:08around it.
00:12Berlin's Olympic Stadium has been used for the country's top sporting events, from the
00:17Euro 2024 to last year's Special Olympics.
00:21But it has a dark past.
00:23It was built for the 1936 Olympics under the Nazis.
00:28Now the German Olympic Sports Confederation is considering bidding for the 2036 Olympics,
00:34the 100-year anniversary.
00:36Supporters say it will let the country show how far democracy has come, but opponents
00:41say they're concerned the sign it could send.
00:44And I think what would happen is that everybody would just talk about that year, and we cannot
00:51tell now what Germany will look like in 2036.
00:56We really don't know how democratic and nice Germany will be in that year.
01:04The interim minister was in Paris last month to sign a declaration for a bid for the Games.
01:10The government says it prefers the 2040 Olympics, as it marks the 50-year anniversary of reunification.
01:17The country could have European competition for both.
01:20London's mayor says he wants his city to host the 2040 Games.
01:25While Hungary is considering a bid for 2036.
01:29A spokesperson for the Ministry of Interior and Community told Euronews that the government
01:33will be following closely upcoming talks between the IOC and the German Olympic Sports Confederation.
01:40It would not say whether the government would support a bid for the 2036 Olympics.
01:46Talks were organized to gauge the public mood.
01:48The leading opposition party, the Christian Democrats, say they're in favor of hosting
01:53the Games, but are concerned there won't be enough public support.
01:57I think this is the most important task, and to be honest, I don't perceive this movement
02:05among the German public today at least, certainly it still can be created in the upcoming future,
02:15but there's a long way to go.
02:19Critics say money instead should be focused on sports infrastructure in need of repair.
02:25It would cost us 240 million euros to renovate all of the sport infrastructure in Berlin.
02:31When we host the Olympic Games, the estimated sum for just the security measurements would
02:36be two billion euros.
02:38So that is really a big difference, and we should first do our own homework before hosting
02:45a big event.
02:46The German Olympic Sports Confederation says a decision on what year it will bid for the
02:51Games will be made in 2025.