Olympics: politics or athletics?

To the Editor:

Early this afternoon, I was fueling my CNN addiction, when they had a nice piece on the history of boycotting the Olympic games.

Obviously, this year's Olympic games, their sponsors, and the related happenings are not without controversy. As Boston Globe columnist Tom Scocca describes China;

"To old-line Cold Warriors, it is an unrepentant godless Communist dictatorship; to the post-Cold War left, it is a cradle for unchecked global capitalism at its most abusive. It is taking manufacturing jobs from the Western working class and flouting the ethical and environmental values of the intellectual class. It still handles dissent by locking up dissenters. It is hostile to freedom of the press, which guarantees it bad press."

But, I wonder, have the Olympics ever really been about the athletes? The International Society of Olympic Historians claims that their mission is "achieved primarily through research into the history of the Olympic Movement and the Olympic Games, through the gathering of historical and statistical data concerning the Olympic Movement and Olympic Games, through the publication of the research via journals and other publications, and through the cooperation of the membership."

Does that really get at the heart of what they are all about? After all, the modern Olympics were revived during the same time that the second wave of empire was at its height. At a time of great anxiety about racial degradation and concerns about eugenics, what better a way to show that my country can kick your country's [rear end]?

Now, maybe you'll say, "times have changed." Well, let's see. Even though many athletes are of a multinational origin, there is still a belabored effort to brand them under one flag or another in an effort to see which country can get the most medals, as if the prevailing nation's citizenry would win a big pizza party. If it were really about the athletes, who cares where they come from?

Finally, we must consider, who are the real winners? After all, no matter who competes, millions will be glued to NBC (owned by General Electric), while sipping Coke, blogging on their Lenovos and Samsungs, and using their Visas at McDonalds because you know Coke + Big Mac = Athlete.

So, again, I must ask, have the Olympics really been anything other than a showcase of global capitalism?

All the best,

Gregory Young

American Studies Ph.D. Student