Annie O’Shea ’12 and Victor Matheson, professor of economics at College of the Holy Cross, helped media outlets localize the Olympic Games during their recent trips to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
O’Shea, who was a history major and captain of the women’s swimming and diving team while a student at the College, works for the sports marketing agency Lagardère Sports, located in Geneva Switzerland, which sent her to the Olympics to work with broadcasters covering the games.
While in Rio, O’Shea blogged about being immersed in Olympic culture for GoHolyCross.com. “I am very excited,” she wrote in one of her posts. “My first Olympic experience tied to an accumulation of the past four years of professional goals and past 20 years of dreams. And if I meet Michael Phelps, that would not be too bad either.”
O’Shea was also interviewed by the Telegram & Gazette about her experiences in Brazil. “It’s been incredible for me, just the basic things of walking around in the athletes’ village or meeting people from every different country in the media center or seeing the fans get so excited when their country’s athletes come out, and, of course, going to the events and seeing the athletes in their field of play is obviously spectacular as well,” she told the Telegram & Gazette.
Matheson, who visited Rio for a conference during the Olympics, gave Central Massachusetts an economic perspective of the Games. He wrote articles for GoLocalWorcester.com, discussing whether “mega-events” like the Olympics are a smart investment for a country’s economy.
“Economists have painted an increasingly dim picture of the wisdom of investing in mega-events like the Olympics and World Cup as a method to promote economic development,” Matheson wrote in one article. “The cost of hosting these events now routinely runs into the tens of billions of dollars.”
Matheson’s economic expertise was featured locally by the Telegram & Gazette and Charter TV3, and nationally by The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.
He was also featured on BBC World Service’s “The Inquiry,” where he discussed noneconomic benefits of hosting the Olympic Games. “If you’re going to tell me that we should host the Olympics because it’s going to make everyone happy, you wouldn’t actually have many arguments from many economists,” he said.
Select Coverage:
- Charter TV3, Aug. 17: Holy Cross Professor Back from Rio 8/17
- BBC World Service, “The Inquiry,” Aug. 16: Why Don’t Cities Want The Olympics?
- The New York Times, Aug. 15: An Olympic Event Where 1st Prize Is the Chance to Lose Billions
- The Wall Street Journal, Aug. 14: NBC’s Ratings for Rio Olympics Fall Behind London
- Telegram & Gazette, Aug. 13: Holy Cross professor adds up price tag on Rio Olympics
- GoLocalWorcester.com, Aug. 12: Dispatches from the Rio Olympics from Holy Cross Professor Matheson –Economic Benefits
- Inside Higher Ed, Aug. 10: Olympic Opportunity
- Telegram & Gazette, Aug. 10: Former Holy Cross swimmer Annie O’Shea realizes Olympic dream with sports marketing agency
- GoLocalWorcester.com, Aug. 4: Dispatches from the Rio Olympics from Holy Cross Professor Matheson
- GoHolyCross.com, Jul. 28: Annie at the Olympics
This “Holy Cross in the News” item is by Jessica Kennedy.
