Youth Olympic Games to cost three times more than original estimate

It will cost Singapore US$387 million to host this year’s inaugural Youth Olympic Games, three times the original estimate of US$122 million, it has been revealed.

The Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) has said that the increased spending was used to upgrade existing venues to allow international broadcasting, as well as this, numbers of volunteers for the Games has risen from 7,000 to 20,000.

However, permanent secretary of the MCYS, Niam Chiang Meng, has defended the increased spending, saying: “The benefits will outweigh the cost, we are quite sure of that. That’s why we decided to go for it. This is the biggest thing that Singapore can ever host. You cannot host an Olympic Games. You cannot host a World Cup. This is it.

“If you want to host this, better host the first one, but hosting the first one, means you are the guinea pig. There are a lot of unknowns, uncertainties.”