Olympic medal hopes - Dead in the water?

By James Whittaker
"It's all over bar the crying". That was sailor Peter Bromby's verdict on his chances of making a fifth straight Olympics after his mast snapped mid-race in Miami yesterday.
He could equally have been talking about Bermuda's medal hopes.
With Bromby out of the picture, what chance does the island have of claiming a podium spot in Beijing?
Triathlete Flora Duffy has shown she can compete with the best in the world but is still a big outsider.
After that, everyone else will be there largely for the experience.
As it stands only Duffy and equestrians Jill Terceira or Patrick Nesbitt have qualified. Swimmers Keira Aitken and Roy Allen Burch and track athletes Xavier James, Arantxa King and Tyrone Smith are close.
But it could be a very small contingent heading for China in August.

Comments

[Tryangle]

I think that Bermuda has been fortunate to have punched well above its weight over the years with world class athletes such as Brian Wellman, Nicky Saunders, Bromby, Paula Lewin and our equestriennes contending for podium places. Now, we're not as fortunate but we do have a number of talented athletes who will represent the island in Beijing and several others who may qualify still. Hopefully they'll achieve qualification and give us more people to root for.

[sparxx]

I mean no disrespect to our athletes, nor the many others around the world who work tirelessly to reach that dream, but it is important to understand that with China's ongoing human rights issues, in Tibet and their support of the Khartoum regime (responsible for the ongoing genocide in Darfur) in the Sudan how can anyone possibly support them by going to the games?

This is an issue that hits at the heart of what the Olympics is supposed to stand for. To support their games is to ultimately support them and all the wrongs that they are doing around the globe.

While it may be an insignificant gesture, I would love for a prominent athlete to step up and denounce the games. There are more important things at stake here than medals.

[James Whittaker]

It's a bit unfair to expect athletes to take a stance where Governments haven't.
There's no trade or diplomatic embargos on China - things that might actually make a real difference rather than tokenism. So why should athletes give up what may be their only shot at the Olympics? All because the IOC made a foolish decision with wholly predictable consequences.

[sparxx]

Is it unfair? If people don't take a stand, how will Governments be forced into action? Is it fair what is happening in Tibet and Darfur?

I understand your point. My point is a simple one. We allow these tragic circumstances to continue in our world because no one is willing to take a stand. Steven Speilberg took a stand, as are many others.

At the end of the day, you decide what's important. Supporting a nation that supports oppression and genocide, and has a sad human rights record is NOT a country that should be given the support of a free world... whether that be in Olympic competition, trade or any other facet of life.

[VARGUS]

I am in no way supporting China's positions in Tibet or Darfur. But many nations have their own demons to deal with before they can start blasting China. The US is a prime example. They have caused a huge mess in the Middle East. Should we now boycott anything hosted by the US?

Many of these athletes have one shot at Olympic glory. They have trained their whole lives for this. Why strip them of that oppurtunity? The world powerhouses could find other ways to protest China's stances without using these hardwork working athletes as their pawns.

[sparxx]

Certainly there are many areas of concern in the world today. We should not be ignorant to any of them, but to that end we should do our part to enlighten and educate.

I think you have misunderstood my intnent here. I do not think that its a country's decision, more a personal one. If the world had cared enough about the situations in Tibet and Darfur, they would have been resolved by now.

Will a prominent athlete (or athletes) care enough about the tragedies to make a stand? Is the chance at personal glory, the chance at a medal more important than the half a million lives that have been lost in Darfur, the millions of people that have been displaced in that country, the thousands that have had their personal rights as humans suppressed in Tibet? What about the countless masses that have been persecuted, prosecuted and killed inside China?

It's funny. When South Africa was under Apartheid law, the world, especially the sports world shunned them and wanted nothing to do with them. The world did the right thing. The human rights violations in China and countries they associate with are equally as bad or worse than anything that was ever done in S.A.

I understand what the Olympics means to the many athletes that have trained tirelessly and should be celebrated and allowed to compete at the world's highest stage. It is also a sad thing that the IOC chose a country who has continued to support genocide and oppression.

Should we view the U.S. or U.K. any differently if they were supporting genocide and oppression? Definitely not. Is Iraq any different? No... definitely not.

The demons have been exposed. How we fight those demons is the challenge to us all. Certainly we can not right all the wrongs of the world, but if we can win one... this one... it will make all the difference to our future athletes.