So far during the 2012 London Olympics, I have observed two atrocities.
The first has to do with Jordyn Wieber of the U.S.women’s gymnastics team. In case you haven’t heard, Jordyn, the reigning world champion, did not qualify for the individual all around event due to a ridiculous rule. The rule states that only two athletes per country can advance to the individual all around event.
During qualifying, Jordyn came in fourth out of all the competitors; however, two of her America teammates finished ahead of her meaning that she didn’t qualify for the individual all around event. Jordyn, you are a victim of the system and you deserved to go through. I guess the Olympics are in the business of rewarding mediocrity.
The second has to do with the eight female badminton doubles players who were disqualified from the Olympics after trying to purposely lose matches. They tried to lose their matches so that they would have a more favorable matchup for the following round which they had already qualified for. What they did was not illegal. Some say it was unethical; however, I believe that it was simply strategy. As far as I’m concerned, strategy is a part of every sport. There is nothing wrong with utilizing strategy to put yourself in a better position. It’s perfectly legal and I say that the eight women should be reinstated.
Brad E.S. Tinnon
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Photo courtesy of JL08