{{For|the Canadian politician|Robert Livingstone Brackin}}{{Multiple issue|{{Like resume|date=May 2022}}{{Promotional tone|date=May 2022}}}} {{Short description|Canadian producer and sport business journalist}} {{Infobox writer | image = Robert livingstone.jpg | name = Robert Livingstone | caption = | birth_date = 1967 | spouse = Hyla Kurtz (d. 2024) | birth_place = Toronto, Ontario, Canada | occupation = Businessman, journalist | nationality = Canadian | children = 1 | website = {{URL|http://www.gamesbids.com}} }} '''Robert Livingstone''' (born 1967) is a Canadian journalist. He is the founder and editor-in-chief of GamesBids, a news and information website for the Olympic Games bid process, since 1998. He "is widely considered one of the world’s foremost experts on the Olympic bidding process."<ref>{{cite news |last1=Michael |first1=Tom |title=With Two Weeks to a Decision, Kazakh Olympic Hosting Bid Stands Strong |url=https://www.edgekz.com/with-two-weeks-to-a-decision-kazakh-olympic-hosting-bid-stands-strong/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150723023259/http://www.edgekz.com/with-two-weeks-to-a-decision-kazakh-olympic-hosting-bid-stands-strong/ |url-status=usurped |archive-date=July 23, 2015 |access-date=1 April 2022 |work=Edge Magazine}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Smith |first1=Aaron |title=Chicago's Olympic bid: An expensive proposition |url=https://money.cnn.com/2009/09/30/news/economy/chicago_olympics_economics/index.htm?postversion=2009093008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091002013204/http://money.cnn.com/2009/09/30/news/economy/chicago_olympics_economics/index.htm?postversion=2009093008 |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 2, 2009 |work=CNN Money}}</ref>
==Life and career== Livingstone's journalistic focus is the Olympic Games' host site selection process, and he frequently comments in the media as a notable expert on the issues related to hosting the Olympic Games by various cities.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Edwardson |first1=Lucie |title=Calgary now front-runner for 2026 Winter Olympics, says online bid tracker |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/olympic-bid-watcher-calgary-front-runner-1.4739520 |work=CBC News |publisher=CBC}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Mclinden |first1=Amber |title=The race before the torch: How does Calgary stack up against other 2026 Olympic Games bid contenders? |url=https://calgaryjournal.ca/2018/09/13/the-race-before-the-torch-how-does-calgary-stack-up-against-other-2026-olympic-games-bid-contenders/ |work=Calgary Journal}}</ref><ref>[http://www.suntimes.com/sports/olympics/419021,CST-NWS-oly08.article "Tokyo throws hat into ring for 2016 Olympic Games"]''Chicago Sun-Times''. June 8, 2007. Accessed July 3, 2008</ref><ref>[http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/2005/06/12/2005-06-12_o__shea_can_you_see_as_olymp.html "O, Shea Can You See As Olympics Plan B? Alternate sites are longshots to Games hopes"] ''New York Daily News'', June 12, 2005. Accessed July 3, 2008</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nysun.com/authors/Robert+Livingstone|title=Robert Livingstone - Archive|website=The New York Sun}}</ref>
In 1998, he launched GamesBids.com, a reference site for Olympic bids as well as BidIndex,<ref>{{cite news |title=Olympics: Bid pundits say London is eroding Paris's lead |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/11/sports/olympics-bid-pundits-say-london-is-eroding-pariss-lead.html |work=New York Times|date=11 May 2005 }}</ref> an original Olympic bid rating system. There, he also serves as a senior journalist. Since 2000, Livingstone has been said to have been "comprehensively covering all Olympic bids for over two decades".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Chan |first1=Kenneth |title=Daily Hive |url=https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/vancouver-2030-olympics-feasibility-progress|publisher=Daily Hive |date=2022-02-04}}</ref> He also covers bids for Commonwealth Games, Asian Games, FIFA World Cup, Pan American Games, Youth Olympic Games and more<ref>{{cite web |title= Robert Livingstone Archives|last1=Livingstone |first1=Robert |url=https://gamesbids.com/eng/author/rliving/ |website=GamesBids.com}}</ref> in both journalistic and opinion pieces.
He was noteworthy during the failed Calgary 2026 Olympic bid when he published his "Dear Calgary:" series<ref>{{cite web |last1=Livingstone |first1=Robert |title=Dear Calgary |url=https://gamesbids.com/eng/tag/dear-calgary/ |website=GamesBids.com}}</ref> that guided the city through the complexities of an Olympic bid before a decisive plebiscite. The series received media acclaim in Calgary along with several Q&A interviews.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Small |first1=Kaylen |title=Why insider says 2026 Olympics wouldn't have been good fit for Calgary |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/5426773/2026-olympics-host-italy-ioc-calgary-rob-livingstone/ |work=Global News Calgary |date=2019-06-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title='Calgary might be the only city left standing': A glimpse into Olympic bid politics |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/calgary-olympic-winter-games-bid-1.4174924 |publisher=Calgary Eyeopener}}</ref> Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi apparently took inspiration from Livingstone's remarks during his 2026 Olympic bid campaign when he said “This has been called the most transparent process in Olympic history.”<ref>{{cite news |title=The Mayor Cannot Be Leading It Anymore |url=https://www.sprawlcalgary.com/sprawlcast-slice-the-olympic-bid-lives-on-88ccc915de40|work=The Sprawl}}</ref> "The mayor was alluding to a tweet from GamesBids.com journalist Robert Livingstone, who covers Olympic bids worldwide" a journalist from ''The Sprawl'' reported.
In 2014, Livingstone was invited to carry the torch in the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics torch relay where he ran a leg in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia.<ref name="auto1">{{cite web |last1=Waterworth |first1=Ben |title=Robert Livingstone Interview |url=https://share.transistor.fm/s/2f5dac68 |website=Off The Podium - An Olympics Podcast |publisher=Transistor.FM }}</ref> In 2010, Livingstone became one of the first web-only journalists accredited to cover the Olympic Games.<ref name="auto1"/>
Livingstone serves as a committee member of the Richmond Hill Sports Hall of Fame in and is a member of the International Society of Olympic Historians.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.richmondhill.ca/en/things-to-do/Sports-Hall-of-Fame.aspx#Committee | title=Sports Hall of Fame | date=8 May 2025 }}</ref><ref>{{cite episode |title = Tarnished Gold | url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/477632/tarnished-gold | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220808074040/https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/477632/tarnished-gold | url-status=dead | archive-date=August 8, 2022 | series = Investigative Reports | network = A&E | air-date = 2000-09-14 | season = 10 | minutes = 60 }}</ref><ref>{{cite episode |title = De Sotchi à Pyeongchang | series = Les Grands Reportages | network = CBC/Radio-Canada | air-date = 2018-01-25 | minutes = 60 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Strashin |first1=Jamie |title=The Breakdown |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FG8q4RVD41I |website=Youtube |date=5 February 2022 |publisher=CBC Sports}}</ref> He has appeared on multiple television, radio, and other shows, including on CBC Radio Canada and A&E.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Radley |first1=Scott |title=Scott Radley Show |url=https://omny.fm/shows/scott-radley-show/can-hamiltons-bid-secure-the-2030-commonwealth-gam |work=CHML Radio Hamilton |date=2021-09-27}}</ref>
His wife, Hyla, passed away in December 2024. She lived with muscular dystrophy. The couple had one child.<ref>https://www.benjaminsparkmemorialchapel.ca/ServiceDetails?snum=140751&fg=0</ref><ref>https://www.thestar.com/business/home-care-patients-say-critical-medical-supplies-have-stopped-arriving-since-ontario-government-changed-distribution/article_966390ba-90a7-11ef-b541-a7fea0f8d443.html</ref>
==Awards== In 2015, Livingstone was nominated for an inaugural International Sports Press Association Sport Media Pearl Award in the category of Journalistic Weblog for his work on GamesBids.com.<ref>[https://www.sportmediapearlawards.com/nominees Sport Media Pearl Awards Website - Nominations List]{{Dead link|date=February 2026 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://gamesbids.com/eng/other-news/gamesbids-com-producer-nominated-for-aips-sport-media-pearl-award/|title=GamesBids.com Producer Nominated For AIPS Sport Media Pearl Award|first=G. B.|last=Staff|date=November 4, 2015}}</ref> In 2018, he was ranked first in North and South America.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://aipsawards.com/single-news?id=67|title=AIPS Sport Media Awards: The Top 10 finalists|website=aipsawards.com}}</ref> He finished on the podium for the first time on May 13, 2025, placing third for Best Column in the 2024 edition, writing about sports politics surrounding Olympic cricket. <ref>{{Cite web |title=A Caravan of Moroccan Dreams: AIPS Sport Media Awards honour top journalists of the year in special ceremony in Rabat |url=https://www.aipsawards.com/single-news?id=20457 |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=www.aipsawards.com |language=en}}</ref> {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year ! Award ! Category ! Work ! Result |- | 2015 || AIPS Sport Media Pearl Awards || Best Journalistic Weblog<ref>[https://www.sportmediapearlawards.com/nomineesGallery Sport Media Pearl Awards Website - Nominations List] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304114449/https://www.sportmediapearlawards.com/nomineesGallery |date=2016-03-04 }}</ref> || ''GamesBids'' || style="background:gold;"| Shortlisted |- | 2018 || AIPS Sport Media Awards || Best Journalistic Weblog<ref name="auto"/> || ''GamesBids'' || style="background:gold;"| 5th (Winner in Americas) |- | 2021 || AIPS Sport Media Awards || Best Column<ref>{{cite web |title=Writing - Best Column |url=https://www.aipsmedia.com/aips/pages/articles/2022/31084.html |website=AIPS Awards |publisher=AIPS |access-date=1 Apr 2022}}</ref> || ''GamesBids'' || style="background:gold;"| Shortlisted |- | 2024 || AIPS Sport Media Awards || Best Column<ref>{{cite web |title=Writing - Best Column |url= https://www.aipsawards.com/single-news?id=20457 |website=AIPS Awards |publisher=AIPS |access-date=14 May 2025}}</ref> || ''GamesBids'' || style="background:gold;"| 3rd place globally |- |}
==References== {{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Livingstone, Robert}} Category:1967 births Category:Living people Category:Businesspeople from Toronto Category:York University alumni