Olympic Honours and Plastic Brits

Dear Editor

In response to Mr Richard Vanlint article according to the newspapers and Wikipedia there were 61 plastic Brits that’s 11% of the British Team. This includes people born of British parents born outside UK. 8 of them have competed for other countries in the past. Cuban Borne Triple Jumper Yamile Aldama and Wrestler Olga Butkevych from Ukraine only got their passports a couple of months ago

My point was that

1)   Athletes compete to win an Olympic Medals for themselves and to do that you have to be completely selfish. This may not be what you want to hear but it is the truth my own experience and my experience with many other Olympic and World Class Athletes know that to be a fact

2)   The Olympics is no longer a Festival of Amateur Sports people gathering to together once every 4 years to celebrate the purity of sport and the perfection of the Human body

3)   The Modern Olympics is about a cooperate organisation I.O.C. putting on a entertaining spectacle that will capture the World s imagination, which it does

4)    Athletes are paid professionals today how else can you attend more then one Olympics, some have done 4 or 5. I was a reserve for the Moscow Olympics 1980, I spent 4 years trying to get there what money I earned went on me, the wife worked to keep the family. If I had another 4 years I would go to the next Olympics but it was financially impossible, that was the norm in those days.

5)   The Olympics is a show and the athletes performers if that is the case why not take athletes from any country to compete for GB

6)   How long before there will be no countries in the Olympics only Athletes who are sponsored by major companies? Would that be such a bad idea?

I was also extremely dismayed by the fact that an un elected Civil Servant Sir Bob Kerslake has decide that all medallist will be mentioned in the New Years honour

The following says exactly what I feel:

”I share the enthusiasm for the outstanding Olympic performance of Team GB. I don't, however, see why they would expect 'a gong' at all. Surely their medals - that’s what they competed for with such outstanding results, rewarded them. Awarding to civil servants who are paid well for doing their jobs and who often enjoy pensions that the private sector can only dream about is entirely outdated and ludicrous. These people are essentially achieving for themselves either because they are well rewarded or to fulfill personal ambitions - that should be enough. If we are to keep the awards systems at all they should go to people who are motivated to help others - the unrecognized charity workers, fund raisers, researchers, people who devote their lives to careers to help their communities despite rather than because of their meager pay. We could also do an awful lot more for our servicemen and women - they are our real heroes.”

How many Service men and women, have died for this Country, how many have lost limbs. Lets put into perspective the Olympics was an extremely well organised and spectacular Sports event but it was ONLY SPORT

Yours Truly

Martin Clarke