Own the podium has become a national embarasment
February 21, 2010 - 12:49pm
-_-
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How sad.
Big Push From Canada Is Not Panning OutMellisa Hollingsworth, a favorite for a gold medal in skeleton, cried when she finished fifth on Friday. “I feel like I let my whole country down,” Hollingsworth said.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/21/sports/olympics/21podium.html
How sad.
Actually, what is not "sad" is Canada's actual performance. Canada is doing well (four gold -- and eight total -- medals so far).
The only thing that may be "sad" about the Olympics from Canada's perspective is, perhaps, over-optimistic expectations.
Besides, most of the medals have yet to be won.
110 million dollars later, it doesn't look like we own the podium to me
Turin 2006 Olympic medal count
Germany - 29 medals
USA - 25 medals
Canada - 24 medals - Third
Vancouver 2010 Olympic medal count so far
USA - 23 medals
Germany - 14 medals
Norway - 11 medals
Korea - 9 medals
Canada - 8 medals - Fifth
I hear a bit of an interview with a Norwegian skier who said he was told that he could not practice skiing with the Canadians because they were on a own-the-podium mission and the Canadians did not want to give away their secrets. Norway's skier said this was absurd because the best way to improve is skiing with the best - the international exposure is where you learn to excel.
"podium - odium" yet another aspect of this awful corporate circus
Own the podium 2010
Own the Podium 2010 (OTP) is a sport technical initiative designed to help Canada become the number one nation in terms of medals won at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, and to place in the top three countries overall at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games.
http://www.vancouver2010.com/more-2010-information/about-vanoc/own-the-podium/
NR, we are at the halfway mark,
and the chief of Own the Podium himself noted before the Games that the first half contained many fewer potential medal wins for Canada than the second, and hence predicted that Germany would lead Canada by 2-1 at this point
exactly correct
he predicted that Canada would then surge and likely finish 2nd-3rd overall
now, I think it is foolish to bet on winning everything or sky-high totals or esp. putting much emotion into that kind of thing, but you DO have to compare apples with apples, that is, a completed Games (Torino) with the same at vancouver (still a week away) ....
Also, $110 million dollars, with the way dollars are thrown around these days, doesn't seem like much to me.
I could care less if Canada came 1st or 101st.
Any program that makes a Canadian athlete think she has let down her country Canada because she finished fifth on the planet in her sport is wrong, wrong, wrong.
But the overall cost of the games - $6 billion is what I've heard - is absolutely bloody ridiculous given the social needs of the city, the province, and the country.
Sorry for the rant, you know how I feel about this.
On another note, Canada will likely win hockey and curling gold, and curling is the only game that matters.
well, are you then against having number-ordered competitions, ie, where people finish 1-2-3 etc in a world competition??
I agree, no one has to feel bad about anything less -- and the 2 Olympic athletes I have known, and who finished way back, are unbelievable physical talents -- but no athlete is going there and competing to finish 37th, believe me
:D
You betcha!
Martin won last night against Murdoch.
Any program that makes a Canadian athlete think she has let down her country Canada because she finished fifth on the planet in her sport is wrong, wrong, wrong.
If she feels she let Canada down, respect her feelings. I personally feel that she let me down. I had so much invested in her. Fiscally speaking, that is.
This whole board is a national embarrassment nothing nbut whining moaning and complaining against canada all day long by well paid separatists obviously.
This board is the Fox news of Canada.
Keep censoring my posts wimps.
The latest incarnation of this gentleman is gone.
Frkn Harris's agism on CTV curling reporting is really getting on my nerves, he needs to be removed from his reporting on curling position and never allowed near a mic on national TV ever again.
And perhaps even a discrimination charge against him at a human rights commission should occur. And yes, I am very serious about this and may contact BC Civil Liberties Association on Monday in this respect.
Skater Rouchette's mother died last night from a heart attack, right after flying into Vancouver to watch her daughter skate next week.
.......condolences go out to the family....
:D
You betcha!
Martin won last night against Murdoch.
I enjoyed that game, I think curling is my favorite as well.
I'm also a little puzzled as to how Canada (or any host country) can admit so openly to such an agenda, which so clearly goes against the spirit of good sporting (sportsmanship). It's like an open admission about what the games are really about, contrary to all the internationalist pomp and circumstance. If this is an accepted Olympic ethic and practice, then doesn't that suggest that the host selection process also is corrupt?
What I mean to say is, if that kind of agenda is specifically allowed, then doesn't that make the selection of the host country all that more loaded?
personally, I see nothing wrong with it, if you are going to go down the Olympic trail in the first place....as every country expends millions to see their athletes win, so why in hell should Canada be any different....?
It is as I have always understood Olympics to be, crass competition between all the countries, it used to be much worse between communist and capitalist countries with each trying to prove they were better at bringing "true" athletes forward, as opposed to the monied few.
But the overall cost of the games - $6 billion is what I've heard - is absolutely bloody ridiculous given the social needs of the city, the province, and the country.
That is a pretty meaningless number unless you put it in context.
What is the revenue? NBC for example spent a fortune for the television rights and is spending big buck on the production. What are the operating costs of the games? Is there an operating deficit?
What are the capital costs and what is their long term value? The Sea to Sky Highway was due for an upgrade, The Canada Line has is running with high usage. The Richmond Oval is well suited for its conversion into a recreational centre. Woodwards is a major housing and community redevelopment that was part of the Olympic package. On the other side did Vancouver need another curling facility. And finally what were the infrastructure choices that were pushed back.
Has there been serious wasteful spending? The Athletes Village obviously is a major cost overrun. There was also significant expenditure on tickets for politicians.
Community displacement. Commentators from the DTES on the radio yesterday spoke about how they were generally relieved about the impact on the community. However this is something that only can be measured properly after the games. I have no doubt that there will be a gazillion social engineers studying the issue.
I'm also a little puzzled as to how Canada (or any host country) can admit so openly to such an agenda, which so clearly goes against the spirit of good sporting (sportsmanship).
A team's objective to win as many medals as possible is contrary to "the spirit of good sporting"? Is there any team at the Olympics whose objective is not to win as many medals as possible?
Clue: The whole objective of competitive sports is to beat your opponents...playing by the rules, yes, but beating them nonetheless.
personally, I see nothing wrong with it, if you are going to go down the Olympic trail in the first place....as every country expends millions to see their athletes win, so why in hell should Canada be any different....?
Wrong, wrong, wrong!!
There is a direct relationship between the amount of money countries spend on their elite athletes and how many medals they bring home. Check this link for more details. Very poor countries bring home no medals because they can't afford to spend money on their athletes. I find it bizarre that people who claim to have progressive views would defend spending on such an elitist and corporatist cause.
If you're interested in promoting healthy living, it would be far better to give the money to minor sport directly.
I have no money spending money on the science of sport where we can figure out how to make people fitter and healthier. I'm not a fan of having my tax dollars go to some "Own the Podium" program where money goes to athletes so they can win gold medals and eventually gain endorsements from sponsors.
Own the podium has been more of a USA approach to winning. Canada used to used another approach. Have we changed our Canadian nature in such a short period of time. This term "own-the-podium" reminds me of an approach some self-help or marketing guru such as Tony Tobbins would use.
The program should have been called "buy the podium".
Less than 1 hour to game time.
Halfway through the Winter Games, the United States dealing in heavy medal
To now, though, Canada has had to cope with logistical glitches and lagging medal production as Team USA has burst to its most productive Winter Olympics start ever and on trajectory to win the overall medal count for the first time since the 1932 Lake Placid Games.
With 23 medals in the first eight days of competition, through Saturday, the U.S. was nine trinkets ahead of Germany, 12 from Norway and 15 past Canada, which at least has its sense of humour intact.
As late as Friday, Canada led the competition in fourth- and fifth-place finishes.
"We have always been a fourth to be reckoned with," joked Chris Rudge, chief executive officer of the Canadian Olympic Committee.
http://www.thespec.com/News/BreakingNews/article/725822
Less than 1 hour to game time.
I can't even see the game in HD -- but at least it's on.
The US is lucky to have the lead after one period.
Wrong, wrong, wrong!!
There is a direct relationship between the amount of money countries spend on their elite athletes and how many medals they bring home. Check this link for more details. Very poor countries bring home no medals because they can't afford to spend money on their athletes. I find it bizarre that people who claim to have progressive views would defend spending on such an elitist and corporatist cause.
If you're interested in promoting healthy living, it would be far better to give the money to minor sport directly.
Try reading what I said, as opposed to what you think I said.....hint it starts with "if"
Have been opposed to the Olympics all along for decades actually now...however in the Olympic framework mentality there is not a damn thing wrong with paying to win....
what is wrong is the whole damn thing, so keep your "not progressive" nonsense to yourself, it is boring, and a personal attack, which is decidedly not progressive in itself....
Oops. I guess we got outbid for the podium.
We do own the podium. It's just that, in most cases, people from other countries are standing on it.
Time to replace Brodeur - 2nd request. Oh well, at least the women's hockey team will do us proud! The boys can't keep up any more.
We do own the podium. It's just that, in most cases, people from other countries are standing on it.
NR, we are at the halfway mark,
and the chief of Own the Podium himself noted before the Games that the first half contained many fewer potential medal wins for Canada than the second, and hence predicted that Germany would lead Canada by 2-1 at this point
exactly correct
he predicted that Canada would then surge and likely finish 2nd-3rd overall
Canada won 29 medals in World Championships last year (6 of them Gold). 11 of those were in events that have been completed (as of Jan 21)
COC's new programme: Loan the Podium.
I'd just like to say: pwn the odium, Mr. Harper.
Growin' the opium.
A Montreal Gazette article this morning suggests Canada will end up with its best Winter Games medal haul ever, but won't necessarilly finish at the top.
Famous last words?
excerpt:
Canada, however, expects to pick up from 11 to 13 medals in the last four days, and trails the Americans in the gold-medal standings by just three.
"This may have been the U.S. week - the week coming up will be Canada's week," Chambers said.
Wrong, wrong, wrong!!
There is a direct relationship between the amount of money countries spend on their elite athletes and how many medals they bring home. Check this link for more details. Very poor countries bring home no medals because they can't afford to spend money on their athletes. I find it bizarre that people who claim to have progressive views would defend spending on such an elitist and corporatist cause.
If you're interested in promoting healthy living, it would be far better to give the money to minor sport directly.
Try reading what I said, as opposed to what you think I said.....hint it starts with "if"
Have been opposed to the Olympics all along for decades actually now...however in the Olympic framework mentality there is not a damn thing wrong with paying to win....
what is wrong is the whole damn thing, so keep your "not progressive" nonsense to yourself, it is boring, and a personal attack, which is decidedly not progressive in itself....
Maybe you should re-read what you wrote. It was obviously a rationalization for pumping millions of dollars into elitist pursuits. Just because other countries do it, we should too??
"Own the podium" is an embarrassment regardless of the number of medals won. Paradoxically, the more absurd it seems the better for the nation.
Hitler perfected the Olympics spectacle model of jingoism with a smiley face.
If the propaganda circus could work for him (and it did), is it little wonder that politicians of all stripes fall over themselves, crush domestic needs, and put their nations in debt for a few moment of "glory" in the reviewing stands?
Germany emerged victorious from the XIth Olympiad. Its athletes captured the most medals overall, and German hospitality and organization won the praises of visitors. Most newspaper accounts echoed Frederick Birchall's report in The New York Times that the Games put Germans “back in the fold of nations,” and even made them “more human again.” Some even found reason to hope that this peaceable interlude would endure. Only a few reporters, such as foreign correspondent William Shirer, regarded the Berlin glitter as merely hiding a racist, militaristic regime:
“I'm afraid the Nazis have succeeded with their propaganda. First, the Nazis have run the Games on a lavish scale never before experienced, and this has appealed to the athletes. Second, the Nazis have put up a very good front for the general visitors, especially the big businessmen” (Shirer's diary, Berlin, August 16, 1936)...
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/olympics.html
Owning the Embarrassment
VANOC and COC have admitted that Canada "cannot own the podium now, with the USA too far in the lead for us to catch up in the medal count". In fact, we might even end up behind Korea.
"Owning the Podium" is very UN-Canadian anyhow, it is just not like us. We don't want to "own" it, we just want to get there when we deserve it. Doesn't "owning the podium" sound like a big bully talking? It is not us.
Also, it never felt THIS bad before, and I blame the "Own the Podium" program for that. I would have been content if Canada's Olympic athletes were doing the usual "finishing just out of the medals since 1896" if we had never heard predictions and expectations of "owning the podium".
PS - we might end up with only 12 medals, which would be the lowest total since 1994 when Canada won 13 medals.
I don't care how many medals Canada wins, but my prediction is that Canada will be closer to 20 medals overall, not 12.
I don't care how many medals Canada wins, but my prediction is that Canada will be closer to 20 medals overall, not 12.
My guess is that Canada will exceed 20 medals.
If we were to respect the idealism that is supposed to be behind the Olympics rather than the reality we see then we should reverse the approach and produce a Canadian approach.
1) do not spend money trying to bring the Olympics here
2) invest some of the money in to athletes who can compete
3) invest some of the money in to healthier living and sport for all Canadians
4) invest some of the money in to a program to adopt other countries -- share and link directly to athletes who are competing from countries who cannot support them --(You could call this "share the podium") We could help with their training and equipment. Effectively double what we do- but have half go to our athletes and the other half support athletes from developing countries. I think that would create a lot of good will and Olympic spirit. We would be invested in those people.
Given how massively expensive it is to host the Olympics not doing so could do all the above as well as support our own people where they need health care etc.
I came up with the 4th because I am so struck by the greed of the Olympics. The ad for the Olympics I actually like was the story of the Norwegian coach who gave the Canadian a ski pole after she broke hers. The idea of helping each other is much more modern than this taking any advantage to get whatever hardware we can buy.
I also would like to see a real cost of the Olympics calculated- has anyone done this? -- there is a financial cost that is net of course for any revenue-- but there is also human costs-- it would be interesting is anyone put them in the same place.
CBC on my way home had bits of interview with a (CanOC?) official. Lamenting that the "own the podium" program has fallen so short of owning the podium, he stated that post olympics they would..."eviscerate the program to the nth degree" in order to find out what they had done wrong.
Huh?
I agree with "Sean in Ottawa", I think all that money would be far better spent promoting the health of all Canadians, including an increase in funding to minor sport, youth programs, and school nutrition. $6 billion dollars to procure the games would have gone a long way in improving the infrastructure of this country's health care system. From a selfish standpoint, the $110 million spent on "owning the podium" would have done much to address the plight of the homeless where I live (Toronto).
As much as I enjoy seeing Canadians win medals, I also appreciate seeing the excitement in the faces of those from other nations who do the same. I'd rather the Olympics be a competition among true amateurs, without so much focus on who wins what, and if we stopped trying to buy medals we'd likely win less sure, but then winning a medal would mean more.
Are the NHL players getting paid to play in these games???
No, they are already loaded by big salaries from the NHL-- so yeah they are getting paid but not for this specifically.
The Canadian dream is dead. The Americans own our podium.
Own The Podium dream is over; Canadian officials say Americans have too many medals to catch up
http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5hmEgRu0B7ZD...
Thanks, Sean.
The Olympics is proof of the old adage that you can ruin anything by throwing enough money at it.
The Olympics is proof of the old adage that you can ruin anything by throwing enough money at it.
You know, that's not a bad quote. I would slightly modify it thusly:
The Olympics and government are proof of the old adage that you can ruin anything by throwing enough money at it.
The Canadian dream is dead. The Americans own our podium.
... and our gas and oil, massive mounts of hydroelectric power, minerals and timber rights in Bananada. And if that's not enough, Steve the penultimate stooge wants to hand more of our Northern Puerto Rico to Yanqui imperialists. 22 percent of Banadians voted for this stooge, and he will sell what's left of Bananada out from under our feet for a bit of kick-back and graft. And I don't think it's for that much money or anything. I think Steve and his stoogeocrats are all pretty cheap dates like their US counterparts are in Warshington. They'd sell their mothers for a song.
The Olympics is proof of the old adage that you can ruin anything by throwing enough money at it.
You know, that's not a bad quote. I would slightly modify it thusly:
The Olympics and government are proof of the old adage that you can ruin anything by throwing enough money at it.
*Groans*. This old adage comes to mind: if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
Canadian NHL players are eligible for a $20K bonus (if they win gold, $15K for silver and $10K for Bronze). US players are eligible for a $25K bonus. So far the Canadian players have done their best to make this a moot point.
For what it's worth, at least Canada finally won gold at home.
I'm curious. It the Canadian women's hockey team played the Canadian men's hockey team in a hockey game, what would the final score be!
4 marriage proposals, 1 broken nose, and 7 missing teeth.
I'm curious. It the Canadian women's hockey team played the Canadian men's hockey team in a hockey game, what would the final score be!
It depends. Who's in net for the men, Brodeur or Luongo?
Do they use Men's or Women's rules?
We've been exhorted to believe in the magic of sports, in the transformative power of the Olympic torch – that no dream is too big to dream, that guts and willpower will bring us glory.
But next week, when Ottawa brings down its budget, all that big-thinking and sky-high believing is to be shelved. We'll be advised to think small, think restraint, focus on the impossibility of things. Deficits will own the podium.
Linda McQuaig
I think the reversal by COC to run up the white flag over 'Own The Podium' is a cynical ploy to lower expectations for the rest of the Games, and to get Canadians thrilled again when Canada actually scores any medals in the days remaining.
Did a bunch of Reformers come up with the Canadian Olympic Committee's unfortunate acronym?
I think the reversal by COC to run up the white flag over 'Own The Podium' is a cynical ploy to lower expectations for the rest of the Games, and to get Canadians thrilled again when Canada actually scores any medals in the days remaining.
If that is their thinking, it's pretty silly.
Canadians, by and large, are already quite thrilled with the performance of our olympic athletes.
Poll: 84% of Canadians disagree that "if Canada fails to win the most medals of any nation or lead in the medal count, the Games will be a disappointment."
When my local rag had a stupid headline indicating an athlete had 'settled' for silver, they got flooded with letters to the editor giving the paper a hard time and indicating how happy they were with the medal.
The same paper ran a couple of negative columns from Cam Cole about Canada 'giving up the podium', and they have gotten the same response.
The bottom line is most Canadian sports fans want our athetes to try hard and conduct themselves with some integrity. If they do that, fans won't care too much if they don't win gold.
Except of course for hockey and curling. There the stakes are life and death.
Excellent article by Linda.
Reefer take a freakin powder, as you are reading in what you want, and apaprently have not read anything else I have written about the Olympics, and so obviously are operating on your own little personal agenda, as per usual.
Strive For Success is not the same as Own the podium.
I think the vast majority of Canadian support our athletes in their endeavors and wish them success, they just don't like the in your face jingoism of the assholes who set up the program with this arrogant name.
I think the vast majority of Canadian support our athletes in their endeavors and wish them success, they just don't like the in your face jingoism of the assholes who set up the program with this arrogant name.
From a public-perception perspective, it's probably not the best label to put on the program. Might as well call it the "We're Gonna Throw Down and Kick Their Asses!!" program.
Now, the fact that the Canadian team wants to "own the podium" or to "throw down and kick their asses," that's okay. Every team in the event wants to do that. They just don't need to publicize it.
Wanting to win is still within the bounds of good sportsmanship. Own the Podium is just immature playground taunting and is an embarrassment because it is not in the spirit of collegial competition. Our athletes are not to blame they didn't start the trash talking our corporate leaders did.
Own the Podium meant excluding elite foreign athletes like Shani Davis and Askel Lund Svindal from Canadian training sites, thereby ensuring that Canadian athletes wouldn't benefit from their expertise. As a result, Davis's ex-training partner, Canadian Denny Morrison, is going home medal-less, as are Canada's entire alpine skiing team--on whom OTP spent more money than any other discipline: $10 million dollars. To ensure a Women's Hockey gold medal, Hockey Canada with OTP centralized the women's program, stripping teams across Canada of their best players and stunting the development of all but 23 Canadian women.
I support investment in Canadian amateur sport, but is an arrogantly-named (expertly exposed by the sly genius and equally arrogant Apolo Anton Ono's quip that the Americans just want to rent the podium for February), short-sighted, jingoistic and protectionist strategy the best approach? Everyone (except, I suppose, Jeff Montgomery) seems to think it is not...
I think the vast majority of Canadian support our athletes in their endeavors and wish them success, they just don't like the in your face jingoism of the assholes who set up the program with this arrogant name.
For me personally, the wording is the same, and think the whole use of "own" was them just trying to be "cool", as part of the cliche chic tallk "i own'd you" in all its variations. And yes, I too find that type of today's slang arrogant, others don't.
What I am finding troubling more so the the use of the word "own", is the new mantra by CTV this week of "the brotherhood of Canada and the USA against the world" almost choked on my yogurt.
A country, like Canada, that is implicated in torture shouldn't even be allowed to hold the Olympics.
Well that type of regulation would effectively shut down the Olympics completely would it not?! ;)
I think that any countries that are in the Olympics should have their medal count reduced by the number of civilian "collateral" deaths their troops have caused during the Games.
Remind we have had an integrated military for a long time but the Olympics has now completely opened up our country to the American security regime. I too find the jingoism of being the Evil Empire's best friend very disturbing. Canadian democracy has become a facade. On any and all meaningful decisions our government says we cannot act until we hear what Washington is going to do. Gotta love democracy.
But lets all count our blessings that we don't live in a police state where the government can be told that they have breached a citizens Charter rights and then simply ignore the judiciary and leave the citizen to rot in an illegal American prison.
Good post Lou, just not quite sure about the Curling.
Good post Lou, just not quite sure about the Curling.
Well, that might be an Alberta thing, since both teams are from here.
Winnig two curling Gold would be a bit of a balm for failing to win Hockey Gold.
On the plus side Canada remains dominant in fringe sports. Perhaps we should push to make downhill skateboarding an olympic sport so that Canada can clean up in the summer olympics.
http://www.igsaworldcup.com/rankings/world_rankings/2010_world_rankings/2010_world_rankings.htm
Internationally Canadian's hold 5 of the the top 10 in women's downhill and the top three spots for the men's.
“We are going to be short of our goal. I readily admit that.” - Chris Rudge of Own The Podium
Chris 'Canada's Joe Goebbels' Rudge of Own the Po'. Maybe Chris should consider helping out the Americans next time. Heeeey...Wait a minute!
I was going to call Godwin, but then I noticed Post # 40.
Erik Guay: Own the Podium Needs to Listen to Athletes
After seven Olympic races, Guay's fifth-place finishes in the downhill and super-giant slalom are Canada's best ski results. He missed the podium in the super-G by .003 of a second.
In the past Guay was critical of the burden Own the Podium placed on athletes.
"It's easy for somebody to sit down, chalk up a bunch of results, then puff out their chest and say we are going to do this and do that," the Mont-Tremblant, Que., resident said in an interview last spring. It's another thing to go out and deliver. That's what the athletes have to do.
"If it's the Canadian men's hockey team that says we guarantee a gold, that's one thing. But if it's some guy at the COC that is saying we guarantee they are going to win gold, that's not fair. That does add pressure."
[...]
Guay also questioned the worth of the special Global Positioning System developed for the ski team as part of OTP's $7.5-million Top Secret program. The system was supposed to help skiers find the fastest route down the mountain and aid technicians in deciding which ski and wax combinations work the best.
"If I had the final word on what to do with stuff, I would have allocated it a little differently," said Guay.
"The GPS thing is great in theory. But for a skier to get better it's pretty simple. All he has to do is ski. The more you ski, the better you get. The technological advantages for 1/100ths of a second is tough to find. If you are training faster and better, you can find the half-second."
Having failed, now the federal government wants you to Own the Podium for them.
The federal government
is signalling it will refuse additional funding for the Own the Podium program, but Sports Minister Gary Lunn says Ottawa will try to persuade Canadian companies and individuals to fill an $11-million gap in the elite-athlete training program after the Winter Games end.
Winnig two curling Gold would be a bit of a balm for failing to win Hockey Gold.
as of today, Wednesday 24th a.m., who can say we are not going to win hockey gold ???
Linda McQuaig puts this circus, sordid on so many levels, in perspective.
The fact that most, including the progressive leaning, get caught up in the minutia of this orgiastic obscenity illustrates why there will never be real progress in society--propaganda will always win in the end.
By Linda McQuaig
| February 23, 2010
....
But next week, when Ottawa brings down its budget, all that big-thinking and sky-high believing is to be shelved. We'll be advised to think small, think restraint, focus on the impossibility of things. Deficits will own the podium.
That's not because the public only cares about sports. It's because the corporate world only supports public investments when it comes to sports and war, from which it makes money. But it wants to hold the line on public investment in health care, education, child care, social supports, etc.
http://www.rabble.ca/columnists/2010/02/deficits-will-own-podium
As others have pointed out, the program title was unfortunate. Probably sounded really cool during the presentation by the ad exec. Unfortunately sport is more unforgiving than the corporate world, where companies routinely adopt mission statements like "We will provide the most awesomely orgasmic customer service in the history of this or any other galaxy." The reality is that spending money does not necessarily guarantee anything.
Look at hockey. Every level of government in Canada massively subsidises hockey. We build expensive ice rinks in small towns to serve the needs of a small fraction of the population, make grants and tax breaks available to amateurs, and dangle incentives in front of every level of pro and semi-pro teams. At an informal level, parents make sacrifices they would never contemplate to get Jason into pre-med, teachers excuse absences because, well, it's a tournament, and every spring small towns erupt in signs encouraging the local kids to succeed at the regionals. You'd think with that level of investment we'd be guaranteed hockey hegemony till 2135. But sport is unpredictable. At the international level Canada always contends, but some years we're just outcoached, outplayed, or unlucky.
To the Own the Podium folks, I recommend the words of the Preacher, commenting on why sport is so fascinating: "The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong...but time and chance happeneth to them all."
"Owning the Podium" is very UN-Canadian anyhow, it is just not like us. We don't want to "own" it, we just want to get there when we deserve it. Doesn't "owning the podium" sound like a big bully talking? It is not us.
Also, it never felt THIS bad before to be failing to get medals, and I blame the "Own the Podium" program for that. I would have been content if Canada's Olympic athletes were doing the usual "finishing just out of the medals since 1896" if we had never heard predictions and expectations of "owning the podium".
13 Gold medals and a chance for a 14th tomorrow - tied for the most ever at a Winter Games - the most ever by a host nation - sounds successful to me - FYI - the IOC considers the nation with the most Gold to be the winner of the Games not the total # of medals - that only counts if there is a tie in the Gold medal - 26 medals in total - the most ever by Canada - at least 14 of them won by Women - if this doesn't spell success wonder what does.
"Owning the Podium" is very UN-Canadian anyhow, it is just not like us. We don't want to "own" it, we just want to get there when we deserve it. Doesn't "owning the podium" sound like a big bully talking? It is not us.
Also, it never felt THIS bad before to be failing to get medals, and I blame the "Own the Podium" program for that. I would have been content if Canada's Olympic athletes were doing the usual "finishing just out of the medals since 1896" if we had never heard predictions and expectations of "owning the podium".
Well I guess I am eating crow, or some vegatable-based form of choking on my words, because Own the Podium seems to have worked, we got more gold medals that ever before, and more than any other, and of all time. Good job, and I apoligise!
... but if I can crack one more joke, being the HOST NATION and winning all the gold medals is to say "Come to Canada, We Will Beat Your Pants Off", which is not very Canadian at all! Maybe our status in the world is changing, and our identity with it.
Winnig two curling Gold would be a bit of a balm for failing to win Hockey Gold.
as of today, Wednesday 24th a.m., who can say we are not going to win hockey gold ???
and ditto at Sunday 28th p.m.
And the Gold medal for propaganda goes to... Stephen Harper.
Harper urges Canadians to shed quiet nature to cheer on Canada's Olympic team
Thu Feb 11, 11:10 PM
By Dirk Meissner, The Canadian Press
VICTORIA, B.C. - Canadians should drop their normally quiet nationalist ways during the Winter Olympics to loudly and proudly cheer on Canada's Olympic athletes, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Thursday.
...
"Patriotism, ladies and gentlemen, patriotism as Canadians, should not make us feel the least bit shy or embarrassed," he said, on the eve of the opening ceremonies that mark the start of the Olympics.
...
Harper's speech was not all about Olympics. He said Canada's troops in Afghanistan and the country's efforts to help the people of earthquake-stricken Haiti are also fitting tributes to what Canadians bring to the world - a compassionate and generous people who never move forward in anger, but only to help make the world a better place.
As Orwell said, International sport is warfare without the bullets--but the credits for nationalistic fervor are obviously transferable.
We do own the podium. It's just that, in most cases, people from other countries are standing on it.
Technically true but in when we're on it the others are below us.
We do own the podium. It's just that, in most cases, people from other countries are standing on it.
Technically true but in when we're on it the others are below us.
Hey thats right! Canada says sorry. So we own the damn thing, now what? lol
But WHAT A SHOW! I admit, I watched the closing ceremonies. The "Cue the Mounties and the Moose" Michael Buble segment wasas good it gets, wow, over-the-top and fun and patriotic. Maple Leaf Forever and Oh Canada in swing time!! Wonderfull, just great.
As Orwell said, International sport is warfare without the bullets--but the credits for nationalistic fervor are obviously transferable.
Thanks contrarianna.
To Sven, against my better judgement but something he'll understand.
and then the rest of the closing ceremonies was just a series of rock bands until it ended with a guy spinning on his head. The announcer actually had to tell us it was over, a sure sign of a cop out. Whats up with THAT? It should have ended with Buble. This was the final rip-off of these games - be for sure our athletes deserve accolades.
and no Natives! I was sure they would come out for a final drum dance, with live Robbie Robertson music [from the Native American albums].
The medal count is a bit of meaningless trivia that is being used and will continue to be used by politicians and other power brokers to rally people around the flag. Commentators are crowing about getting the most gold medals in history. No doubt the good feelings that come from this and Harper's constant presence at televised events will result in the Conservatives getting a substantial bounce in the polls (it's already started). The Olympics and other elite sporting events are very useful means of distracting the public from things that matter. Marx called religion the opiate of the masses. If he were alive today, he'd likely accord that honor to spectator sports.
To me it's irrelevant that own the podium cost "only $110 million". People who feel better about being Canadian when some individual who does well happens to be wearing the maple leaf should think about why that is.
Maybe the UN should start awarding medals for how countries do on child poverty or infant mortality or income inequality. The event should correspond with hoopla and celebrations with VIPs gushing how proud they are to be Canadian. If that happened, is it possible that real issues would get even 1% of the media coverage that corporate sporting events get? Would Canadians get upset when they realized we can't even get a top 10 finish?
What do the 5 rings represent? Do they have to do with continents?
So owning the podium did not become a national embarassment after all. The success of our athletes at these Vancouver olympics will motivate many younger Canadians to excel in future games.
What do the 5 rings represent? Do they have to do with continents?
I believe they represent those eternal 5 human qualities most closely associated with the olympics:
greed, corruption, arrogance, shallowness and nationalism.
ReeferMadness, what a perfect last post of the thread!
Closing.