Evaluation Of The Influence Of Olympic Legacy On Tourist Destination Development

Infrastructural changes in the tourist destination associated with formation of the Olympic legacy

Formation of the Olympic legacy in the tourist area is accompanied by significant infrastructural changes that can have an essential impact on the subsequent development of the destination.

The following basic properties of infrastructural changes caused by formation of the Olympic legacy are distinguished:

• multifunctionality, which is expressed in fulfilment of a dual function: servicing tourists while at the same time ensuring the functioning of the tourist and recreational sphere;

• a variety of networks and service facilities located within the boundaries of a specific tourist area;

• territorial structuredness, which is expressed in formation of the structure elements according to the “Center – Service Zone” scheme;

• active role in spatial development of the territory (Kulishkin, 2017).

• Analysis of methodological approaches to selection of indicators for quantifying the impact of the Olympic legacy on the development of a tourist destination

The analysis of the existing methods for quantifying the impact of large mega-events on the development of a tourist destination allowed us to determine two methodological approaches:

1) Development of a set of indicators showing the quantitative value of one or another influencing factor.

2) Development of an integral indicator reflecting the impact of a complex of factors on the development of a territory.

The generalized indicator is based on the results of the first approach, i.e. calculated on the basis of private indicators, which give the quantitative values of the studied factors.

Procedurally the algorithm for developing an integral indicator of the influence of the Olympic legacy on the development of a tourist destination is described by the following 5 stages:

1) Formation of blocks of indicators of the Olympic legacy contribution to the development of the territory.

2) Determination of private indicators on the basis of which the integral indicator will be calculated.

3) Determination of their normalized values by correlating the factual indicators to their maximum value for the considered period of time.

4) Calculation of the integral indicator of assessment of the Olympic legacy contribution to the development of the territory.

5) Interpretation of the obtained results.

Let us dwell upon the contents of the listed stages.

To assess the Olympic legacy contribution to the development of the territory, it is proposed to distinguish four blocks of indicators: the economic block, the social block, the ecological block, and the infrastructural block. Each block contains a set of private indicators reflecting the nature of the action, its quantitative measurement and the content side of each indicator.

In the structure of the economic block the following group of private indicators can be distinguished:

1)The factual value of the surplus or deficit of the budget of the tourist destination being analyzed. This indicator allows to determine the extent to which the municipality, the subject of the Federation, the Federation as a whole, cover their expenses with the income received from the event.

2)Profit or loss of enterprises located at the territory of the mega-event. The value of this indicator shows the performance of the enterprises at the territory in question.

3)The average monthly salary level of the population of the tourist destination being analyzed. This indicator reflects change in the income level of the population of the territory from the event.

4)The volume of investment in the capital stock. Due to the fact that any major event is accompanied by significant investments, the territory at which it is held, as a rule, updates the main production assets located on it and is interested in improving the capital-labor ratio and capital productivity of enterprises at the given territory.

5)Index of price changes. This indicator allows to determine the extent to which the event impacts the inflation, which determines the purchasing power of the national currency.

In the structure of the social block the following group of private indicators can be distinguished:

1)Unemployment level. With the help of this indicator one can assess the impact the preparation and holding of a mega-event have on the number of employees, the number of labor resources that do not have a main place of work.

2)The ratio of the minimum cost of living and per capita cash income. In connection with hosting a mega-event, the level of monetary income of the population at the territory of the event, as a rule, increases. However, it is important to assess the degree of influence this event provides on the income, which is the purpose of using this indicator.

3)The number of recorded crimes. In our opinion, the use of this indicator allows one to see the criminal component of the event and to assess how it affects the preservation of order and tranquility at the territory.

It is proposed to include the following group of private indicators in the economic block:

1)Current (operational) expenses on the environmental protection, including payment for nature protection services. It is known that any major sporting or cultural event is accompanied by an increase in anthropogenic load on the territory of the event. Evaluation of the impact the preparation and holding of the event have on the environmental component of the territory allows one to see the degree of its negative impact on the environment, as well as the level of environmental expenses.

2)The number of objects with stationary sources of air pollution. This indicator, like the previous one, allows one to assess the impact the preparation and holding of the event has on the environmental component of the territory.

3)The amount of pollutants emitted into the atmosphere from stationary sources. Monitoring of the atmosphere quality is of exceptional importance for Sochi, which, due to the favorable water and natural conditions, specializes mainly in recreation of citizens. The fact is that the atmospheric environment is a complex system, on the one hand, one that is controlled by humans the least, and on the other, the one that affects humans most adversely.

It is proposed to include the following group of private indicators in the infrastructural unit:

1)The number of rooms prepared to serve the tourist flow. The amount of tourists who want to see this mega-event within the boundaries of the territory in question depends on the capacity of the hotels, condition of the rooms and the quality of service.

2)The coefficient of transport accessibility. It is the most important indicator of the infrastructural support of the event, as a quick transport connection with different types of transport will make it possible to supply all of the events held at the territory with audience.

3)The number of large capacity buildings. Public events require a large space to accommodate the audience. This indicator reflects the willingness of the event organizers to meet the demand of viewers for comfortable, roomy halls equipped with necessary equipment and appliances (Kulishkin & Verbin, 2017).

The integral indicator of the Olympic product impact on the development of a tourist destination

The integral indicator is calculated as the arithmetic average of the normalized private indicators for each block (1):

$E?j=\frac{\stackrel{k}{\underset{i=1}{?}}{?}_i}{k}$, (1)

where: БПj is an indicator that assesses the contribution of the j-factor of the Olympic product to the development of a tourist destination.

Taking into account the heterogeneity of the assessment indicators of the selected blocks, in order to get an adequate assessment, these indicators should be brought to a normalized form. Normalization is carried out by correlating the factual values of the indicators with their best value for the block under consideration. To get the normalized values of the particular indicators, one needs: (1) if the indicator is positive - to find the maximum value (we take it as the benchmark) in the complex of private indicators and divide all the private indicators by it; (2) if the indicator is negative - to find the minimum value (we take it as the benchmark) in the complex of private indicators and divide all the private indicators by it.

The integral indicator of the Olympic product’s impact on the development of a tourist destination is defined as the average value of the indicators of each block (2):

$H{B}_{OH}=\frac{??OH·B+CD+??op·\stackrel{-}{B}+H?}{4}$ , (2)

where: ИВ _ОН is an integral indicator of the Olympic product’s impact on the development of a tourist destination; Экон.Б is an indicator that assesses the contribution of the economic factor of the Olympic product to the development of a tourist destination; СБ is an indicator that assesses the contribution of the social factor of the Olympic product to the development of a tourist destination; Экол.Б is an indicator that assesses the contribution of the environmental factor of the Olympic product to the development of a tourist destination; ИБ is an indicator that assesses the contribution of the infrastructural factor of the Olympic product to the development of a tourist destination.

Assessment of the impact of the Olympic legacy on the development of a tourist destination of Sochi

Tables 01 , 02 , 03 , and 04 present an assessment of the dynamics of the economic, social, ecological, and infrastructural factors of the Olympic legacy influence on the development of the region in 2012–2018 (Central Statistical Database, 2018).

The summarized results of assessments of the economic, environmental, social and infrastructural blocks for determining the influence the Olympic legacy had on the development of the territory are presented in Table 05 and Figure 01 .

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6.4.1. Assessment of the economic factor of the Olympic legacy influence on the development of tourist destination of Sochi

The analysis showed that during the preparation and construction of facilities for the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, there was a significant economic decline (from 0.87 to 0.62). The year of the Games the economic factor value decreased to the minimum value of 0.62, which was caused by significant expenses for organizing and hosting the Olympic Games. However, after the Games were over, there was a tendency of growth of the economic factor caused by the interest in the territory of the Olympic Games (from 0.62 to 0.72).

6.4.2. Assessment of the social factor of the Olympic legacy influence on the development of tourist destination of Sochi

The social factor of the Olympic legacy, in comparison to the economic one, has a more restrained manifestation in general. During the post-Olympic period, the value of this indicator gradually decreased (from 0.79 to 0.64), which is due, firstly, to the decrease in employment due to the completion of Olympic facilities construction and, secondly, to the return to the residual principle in the management of the city’s social policy.

6.4.3. Assessment of the ecological factor of the Olympic legacy influence on the development of tourist destination of Sochi

The environmental factor is different due to the multidirectional changes: during the period of the Olympiad preparation it rises from 0.61 to 0.88 and in the post-Olympic period of the city’s development it decreases from 0.88 to 0.73. The significant improvement of the ecological factor during the period of the Olympic facilities construction is due to the requirements of the Federal Law of November 23rd, 1995, N174-FZ “On Ecological Expertise” and the decision of the head of Sochi of June 19, 2008. “On holding of public hearings on the discussion of materials of assessment of the environmental impact made by the construction of Olympic facilities in Sochi”. Without strict compliance with environmental criteria, no organization could proceed to the construction of an Olympic facility.

The expected preservation of compliance with the ecological factor in the post-Olympic period did not happen, due to the weakening of administrative responsibility for organizations and individuals violating environmental requirements. The tendency of insufficient consideration of the ecological factor remains in force, even in the face of stringent environmental requirements, which they must be during the period of any important mega-event in a resort area (for example, the 2018 World Cup).

6.4.4. Assessment of the infrastructural factor of the Olympic legacy influence on the development of tourist destination of Sochi

The infrastructural factor shows significant growth both during the period of preparation for the Olympic Games (from 0.64 to 0.82) and after (from 0.82 to 0.99). This is perhaps the greatest achievement of the Olympics, which is also being actively used after the Games are over. An important factor of growth of the Olympic legacy infrastructural component is the development of infrastructural components of Olympic construction, which were not mastered during the Olympics, and which were activated and implemented in the post-Olympic period.