Should Olympic athletes be required to play for the country they LIVE in?

CROWLER

CROWLER

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Should the athletes have to play for the country they actually live in?

Discuss. :)


CROWLER
 
Mrs. Gimpy!

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i would say yes.....im sure that there are valid exceptions to that rule that i would agree to, but in general, i believe that you should represent where you live (given you didnt just move there)
 
CROWLER

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I agree 100%.


I watch a TON of the Olympics every year. I see us losing to countries with 1/20th the population we have and it SUCKS!

then I find out that it seems 20% or more of the athletes who compete for other countries AND win medals actually live in the US, are trained by coaches from the US and even go to college in the US and compete on US college teams.


BUT when it is Olympics time oh he plays for Russia because his mother is originally from Russia even though she moved here when she was 2 years old and he never was in Russia until he was 23.

Infact there are a couple athletes who have NEVER even visited the country they played for. They just went from the US, where they have lived for 20 some years, right to the Olympics in Italy. > BULL **** that just aint right.

Today I see the US women's hockey team loses to Sweeden or Switzerland or some other country and the announcer says well that is because of the GREAT goal tending by Jane Doe who plays for Sweeden and who lives in and goes to school in Michagan or Mass or something. Again that just aint right.

I mean come on what is the point of even having teams with different country uniforms on. Why not just everyone compete for yourself and make up any FREAKING team you want.

I am fair though. I also think it was BULL Sh1t that the US gave a Canadian a US citizenship papers on Dec 31st so she could skate for the US. That just aint right for Canada.


DAMN!!!!!!!!!

Ok rant over


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Sunder

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I somewhat agree and somewhat disagree.

I believe that you are able to represent the country of which you are a citizen of - which is not necessarily where you live.

A lot of European hockey players are contracted to play in the NHL. That means they live in either Canada or the US while they are doing this. The majority of them go back to their country when they are finished. I do not think any of these players should play for either Canada or the US (which they don't).

Would it be fair the the American(s) who plays for the Edmonton Oilers, to be forced to play for Team Canada based solely on the fact that he's currently living in Canada? I don't think so, anymore than my friend who's currently teaching English in Japan to be forced to represent Japan or a soldier stationed in Iraq be forced to represent Iraq because he's lived there for the past 2 years.

There are a few duel-citizens out there too, who I actually don't mind. Some Canadians who hold duel-citizenships, with say, Italy, did not make the Canadian hockey team. I think it's pretty lucky for them that they can at least make the Italian team. But yeah, it gets kinda weird if they've never actually been there before though...

BUT - I don't actually like the "ringers" as much. The Canadian team has arguably been the most dominant country in the 100m dash for the past decade. (Yes, US does ok, but they don't help my current point). How many of these guys were born in Canada? Aside from Donovan Bailey, I think most of them were born and raised in Jamaica. It's the Jamacan team, not the Canadian team. To make matters even more frustrating, these guys train in the States. WTF?

Some of these guys may be escaping a bad situation/country, and I understand. They've also became Canadian or US citizens, and that's good too. But it really does feel different watching these guys as opposed to that guy across the street from where you grew up in. It's like getting a step-parent when you're 30 years old, "yeah, I guess you're part of the family now - but you're still different that the parents I had for 30 years before you."

As for that figure skating chick who was Canadian, and is now a US citizen - good for her. Yeah, I guess it "sucks" for Canada - but I honestly don't blame her. The financial and training support athletes get in Canada is laughable to the US. Hell, wasn't it the Ukrainian hockey team last Olympics that had to sell all their hockey equipment just to afford to get plane tickets back home. I don't blame any of them for wanting to stay in North America, where they are given a better chance.

Don't get me wrong - I love and support Canada. But I disapprove in some ways of how they support their citizens and athletes. I have many friends who have moved to the States because we get paid 4x the amount we get in Canada (Comp Sci field). I've thought about going many times myself. LoL - I don't know where I'm going with this... :)
 
jminis

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I agree with you crowler but it's about the money. It's not about the sport anymore sorry to say. It's about advertising and getting paid. Athletes train here because we have the best facilities and the best coaches. Do you think the owners of these facilities or the coaches they hire care whether their from Russia or not. They get paid top dollar by these countries.
 

MarcusG

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Well if they are laying out the cash then they get to choose for whatever flag they choose to compete under.
Besides the US is good at swiping up the good ones.
 

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