ggressive official attitude at Games seems very American

There’s no doubt that in the modern Olympics the size of a nation’s investment helps determine the number of medals its athletes bring home.

Given that reality, perhaps the real Olympic motto should be: Money means medals.

Like millions of other Canadians, I have watched with frustration for years as our modestly funded athletes turned in mostly mediocre performances.

Sure, there was the occasional moment of brilliance when that rare Canadian favourite came through as expected, or when one of our unheralded underdogs surprised everyone with a medal performance.

For the most part, though, Canada has been a typical Olympic nation. It got back in medals what it invested.

While many of us strongly suggested that athletes deserved more funding, there was always an understanding that Canada had greater priorities than Olympic medals.

Supposedly that’s changing.

There certainly were signs from the Vancouver Winter Olympics and now from London that Canada wants to be a more formidable player.

Thanks to millions and millions of additional government and private-sector dollars, our Canadian Olympic teams and their chances of success have bulked up considerably.

The additional money enables athletes to have the best coaching, the most modern facilities, access to top research in the nutritional and fitness fields and all the other perks offered world-class athletes and teams.

This new potential has sprouted a more aggressive official attitude that Canada means business.

Everyone recalls the brash attitude hanging over the Vancouver Olympics and how bold Canadian Olympic Committee predictions put pressure on the Canadian side to deliver.

For the London event, Canadian officials are predicting at least a 12th-place finish, a two-spot improvement over the Beijing Olympics. The Canadian Press medal predictions for London have Canada winning 22 medals, an all-time high for a Canadian summer team at a non-boycotted Olympics.

The Olympic committee’s bold talk was long ago preceded by equally bold action, increased investment for recent Olympics.

It became especially serious at the Beijing event when, for the first time, Canada dove into the cash-for-medals business. Any Canadian athlete who won a medal was awarded a cash prize — $20,000 for gold, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze.

In London, Canada is going one step further.

The coaches will also be financially rewarded when one of their athletes wins a medal. The Olympic committee will pay coaches $10,000 for a gold-medal performance from his or her athlete, $7,500 for silver and $5,000 for bronze.

I like one aspect of our new Olympic attitude. The general increased investment means our athletes have a better shot at success, which, in turn, is a huge boost for the young men and women who sacrifice so much for their Olympic dreams.

Despite the fact that I want to see our nation become more of an Olympic force, I don’t like this aggressive official attitude that Canada is ready to kick butt.

Payments to athletes and coaches based on a medal system seem elitist when that same money could be spread through the entire system.

And giving more attention and investment to those involved in the few sports deemed to have medal potential seems unfair to those up-and-coming athletes who play the “wrong” sports.

Who knows? Maybe this is what Canadians really want.

Maybe I’m old-school in that I view the Olympic Games as an opportunity for athletes to also represent strength through struggle and other important values our country once believed in.

I just can’t ignore that several aspects of our new Olympic approach simply seem too American for my taste.

Original Article
Source: the chronicle herald
Author: CHRIS COCHRANE