All those professionals competing in amateur Olympics really messes with the concept though, eh?
Furthermore, many countries reward medalists with a small bonus. In Canada, for example, you get something like $10-20k ($CAD) per medal. Not a lot, but you can probably cover a month or two of expenses. Being an athlete isn’t cheap.
Yeah, there was a lot of controversy when I was a kid over letting professional athletes compete in the Olympics during the off-season. Plus I’m sure some less scrupulous countries directly fund the programs just under the table. But for this particular case, your issue should be with the rules prohibiting college players from receiving compensation, despite the schools making millions of dollars from their sports programs. Her beef is with the school, not with the nation.
All those professionals competing in amateur Olympics really messes with the concept though, eh?
Furthermore, many countries reward medalists with a small bonus. In Canada, for example, you get something like $10-20k ($CAD) per medal. Not a lot, but you can probably cover a month or two of expenses. Being an athlete isn’t cheap.
Yeah, there was a lot of controversy when I was a kid over letting professional athletes compete in the Olympics during the off-season. Plus I’m sure some less scrupulous countries directly fund the programs just under the table. But for this particular case, your issue should be with the rules prohibiting college players from receiving compensation, despite the schools making millions of dollars from their sports programs. Her beef is with the school, not with the nation.