Go for the gold

June 3, 2008 at 4:16 pm · Filed under Sports

Front page coverage on China’s quest to lead in the gold medals this summer.  Rowing has improved a lot and quickly over the past few years.  The formula seemingly predicable: poor kids hauled from rural areas sweating it out, 7 days a week, 7 years and counting.  I often wondered is there a fairness even in Olympic.  On one hand the best gets to compete in the O every four years.  On the other hand, can you pit an athlete that has to making a living wait tables (or other kind of day job) against another who’s entirely funded by the government, all he or she has to do is to perfecting their game without worry to make ends meet?  Is it fair to include professionals, especially like tennis and basketball when the players all make very comfortable living, have their own well publicized tourneys throughout year?  Shouldn’t we give this opportunity to amateurs?  Any one still remembers the Americans (amateur and collegiate players) win over Russians (the best professionals in the world) in 1980 in Lake Placid (up state New York), that dabbed Miracle on Ice?

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