Christophe Dubi, the executive director of the Olympic Games, who took up his role after the controversial Rio 2016 Games, has staunchlydefended the Paris Games and the work of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in this regard.

In an interview with Spanish newspaper El País, Dubi defended the IOC's work in previousOlympic Games before the shift to Olympic Agenda 2020 (which, among other things, opposes the ideology and development methods of the Summer Olympics). 

"We have faced considerable criticism for building venues that are not used after the Games. However, our latest report shows that this criticism, while valid in some cases, was often overstated. Most Olympic venues have been used effectively for many decades."

While defending the effort despite the massive construction, he conceded that "there were cases like Athens 2004 where they hosted sports like softball, baseball and hockey that were never popular in Greece, creating a lasting negative perception".

Since the German Thomas Bach took office, there has been a Copernican shift in the IOC. The Paris Games will be the first to follow a roadmap called Olympic Agenda 2020, the IOC's plan for "the Olympic Games to adapt to the city" and not the other way around.

This agenda encourages host cities to use existing facilities as much as possible or build temporary ones, rather than spending billions on stadiums that may never be filled.

In Paris, only two new permanent venues have been built: an aquatic centre in Saint-Denis (which, incredibly, will be used for diving rather than swimming due to budget cuts, with a temporary venue at Paris La Defense Arena eventually chosen) and a sports stadium at Porte de la Chapelle, both in the deprived north of the city.

The new rules were pushed through by Thomas Bach and John Coates, who took over as IOC president and vice-president in 2013 amid concerns that the Games were no longer attractive to cities. Montreal, Athens and even Sydney had seen very negative economic results from hosting the Games, not to mention Beijing, which spent nearly 40 billion euros on its organisation in 2008.

Cities were scared off by the cost of bidding for and hosting the Games, and there were virtually no bids, so they had to change to avoid being changed.

It is no coincidence that Paris, Los Angeles and Brisbane will host the next Summer Games. Mega-cities with adequate infrastructure, and what they lack will be built temporarily, in an environmentally friendly way and, above all, in a way that is easy on the citizens' wallets (who, after all, are the ones paying for the Olympic party).

Although for Dubi the Rio 2016 Games were "one of the best things" to happen to Brazil, he now defends diametrically opposed games such as those in Paris. "We are making the best use of the existing infrastructure in Paris and the region. In addition, these Games will be the most sustainable ever, not only in environmental terms, but also in economic terms. Recent estimates suggest an impressive economic impact of between 7 and 11 billion euros".

The challenge was enormous; many years of history had to be changed, but reality would have overtaken them if they had not changed. In the interview with El País, he made it clear that "between 2013 and 2015, it was a challenge to find cities willing to host the Games. There was a fear that hosting the Games would be too much for the city's finances".

Recognising the problem, they began to work differently. "We completely changed our strategy to create a more affordable and sustainable approach for potential candidates. As a result, we offer cities a support model that makes stakeholders more willing to host the Games, confident in the sustainable and adaptable framework we now provide."

Asked by El País about the reasons for the selection of Athens 2004 and how the Games were run, Dubi said: "It was driven by a vision of profound urban transformation, similar to the impact of the 1992 Barcelona Games. I was closely involved in overseeing the construction and can confirm that the Athens project was ambitious but well executed. The Athens 2004 Games went off without a hitch".

Commenting on the scale of the project, he said: "While there is always debate about the need for such large projects, the decisions made at the time were aimed at creating lasting beauty and functionality for Athens. It would be difficult to find anyone in the city opposed to this project".

Similarly, he defended the urban transformation brought about by the creation of new arenas and Olympic parks in Rio, arguing that they, along with "new vital links between the poorest areas and the city centre, are giving the people of Rio de Janeiro access to employment opportunities".

"Reports show that many of the sports facilities have found new life, either continuing their original purpose or being repurposed as schools or other essential services," said Dubi, adding that they would do it again.

Those of us who were lucky enough to know beautiful Rio de Janeiro before the Rio 2016 Games, and who worked there during and after the Games, know that they were more promise than reality.

In fact, the famous metro that was supposed to reach Barra de Tijuca (where the Olympic Park and the Olympic Village were located) was never completed, leaving many of the connections to be used by other forms of public transport. Moreover, the area was not the poorest in the city; on the contrary, it could be said that the rest of the Olympic sites had only received a "facelift" (as happened in Deodoro and the city centre).

Dubi did not shy away from the subject of why Brisbane was chosen 11 years early as the only candidate to host the 2032 Olympic Games, when they are usually chosen less years in advance.

In the same interview with El País, Dubi said: "Normally we plan the Games six or seven years in advance, but Brisbane presented such a compelling vision that we seized the opportunity, even though Paris and Los Angeles were in the running for 2024 and 2028 respectively. The proposal was innovative."

Finally, regarding the future of the Games, especially the Winter Games, Dubi said in the interview with the Spanish media that "by 2050, climate change may require the Winter Games to be rotated among 10 to 11 climatically reliable regions, as it may be very difficult to find snow below 2,000 metres".