The IOC Bans Political Statements at the Olympics

“We” wouldn’t you dope, I’m saying that the IOC wants to make sure that nobody offends big powers, particularly China, because they’re kind of important.
Yes, duh, the IOC seeks to placate Russia and China.

That does nothing to refute my assertion that protesting dopers isn't an inherently a political act, and shouldn't be included in this otherwise sensible policy.
 
National competition is inherently political. Because nations are political entities.
Which justifies only political treatment of the competition itself.
 
National competition is inherently political, because nations are political entities.

Nations are homeland of athletes. No body is watching the Australian flag raised and pondering about its political climate or values (fires aside) betting most watching the medal ceremony couldn't tell you the pm name
 
Yes, duh, the IOC seeks to placate Russia and China.

That does nothing to refute my assertion that protesting dopers isn't an inherently a political act, and shouldn't be included in this otherwise sensible policy.
It is not a political act to everyone in the world except for the Communist Party of China.

That is specifically why I jumped to the conclusion that it is to accommodate China, because any criticism of them is politically motivated or racism from white westerners who cannot stomach to see an Asian power.
 
Nations are homeland of athletes. No body is watching the Australian flag raised and pondering about its political climate or values (fires aside) betting most watching the medal ceremony couldn't tell you the pm name

Sounds like a myopic view of the Olympics. It was a proxy clash of values for most of the cold war (beyond the boycotts), hence the state run doping regimes in the Eastern Bloc.
Likewise the protest against the Nazis by black athletes, who had outright declared the '36 games as a showcase of racial superiority and refused to allow German Jews to participate (while other countries shamefully sidelined their Jewish athletes to appease the Nazis). It was the wins, not just the raised fists, which flew in the face of Nazi ideology.
 
Sounds like a myopic view of the Olympics. It was a proxy clash of values for most of the cold war (beyond the boycotts), hence the state run doping regimes in the Eastern Bloc.
Likewise the protest against the Nazis by black athletes, who had outright declared the '36 games as a showcase of racial superiority and refused to allow German Jews to participate (while other countries shamefully sidelined their Jewish athletes to appease the Nazis). It was the wins, not just the raised fists, which flew in the face of Nazi ideology.

It can be used as a political tool, I'm not saying it can't. However a significant majority of viewers are not associating politics to the games. For the vast number of viewers, flags are just identifying the country of the athlete. Just like when most people see a flag out in general, they are not examining the political climate of said nation
 
It can be used as a political tool, I'm not saying it can't. However a significant majority of viewers are not associating politics to the games. For the vast number of viewers, flags are just identifying the country of the athlete. Just like when most people see a flag out in general, they are not examining the political climate of said nation

Nationalism itself is inherently political. Supporting your nation's athletes is an inherently political act. What's more even outside of more explicit circumstances such as the Cold War or Nazi Germany's racial ideology, I think you'll find there's significant crossover between political attitudes towards nations and competitive attitudes towards their country's athletes.
That's of course leaving aside any internal politics (or actions like North and South Korea marching together under the Korean Unification flag).

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Nationalism itself is inherently political. Supporting your nations athletes is an inherently political act. What's more even outside of more explicit circumstances such as the Cold War or Nazi Germany's racial ideology, I think you'll find there's significant crossover between political attitudes towards nations and competitive attitudes towards their country's athletes.
That's of course leaving aside any internal politics.

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Patriotic pride in an countrymen winning a medal is not nationalistic nor is it political.
 

It's self contradictory, patriotism towards a national group (in competition no less) and nationalism cross over in meaning aside from semantic quibbling about associations and insinuations. By definition, taking pride in the actions of a politically defined group, participating in that political identity, is political.
No less than a Tibetan that doesn't take pride in Chinese Olympic wins unless they are Tibetan.
 
It's self contradictory, patriotism towards a national group (in competition no less) and nationalism cross over in meaning aside from semantic quibbling about associations and insinuations. By definition, taking pride in the actions of a politically defined group, participating in that political identity, is political.
No less than a Tibetan that doesn't take pride in Chinese Olympic wins unless they are Tibetan.

It's a ridiculous notion that you can't take joy in a countrymen winning a medal at the Olympics without it being politically motivated. I can vote completely different than said athlete, i can be vehemently against their views, and still take pride simply because we are from the same country.

I can be proud of a hometown athlete too, and it has nothing to do with political factors. I can be proud of a non countryman who happens to play on my favorite team when they play in international competition as well.
 
It's a ridiculous notion that you can't take joy in a countrymen winning a medal at the Olympics without it being politically motivated. I can vote completely different than said athlete, i can be vehemently against their views, and still take pride simply because we are from the same country.

I can be proud of a hometown athlete too, and it has nothing to do with political factors. I can be proud of a non countryman who happens to play on my favorite team when they play in international competition as well

Politically motivated in the sense of a conscious decision based on personal political values? No.
The identity you share with your countrymen is a shared political identity though.
Affirming that identity is a political action.
That's why competition (especially wins) at the Olympics makes for great national propaganda and has been used as such extensively.
 
Politically motivated in the sense of a conscious decision based on personal political values? No.
The identity you share with your countrymen is a shared political identity though.
Affirming that identity is a political action.
That's why competition (especially wins) at the Olympics makes for great national propaganda and has been used as such extensively.

Or, because majority of Olympic sports no one follows regularly. So you support someone in which you share a commonality. Just because formation of countries that happened centuries ago happened under a political basis, doesn't mean supporting a countrymen in a sport event on the International stage is a political driven entity
 
You think more than one third of the country is thinking about the politics of America, when some wrestler who wins gold is standing proudly while their anthem plays and their flag is displayed?

No, they're thinking "America, fuck ya!". Replace "America" with the winning nation, and that's what every other country is thinking too, when their champions are up there.


Yes
 
National competition is inherently political, because nations are political entities.

lmao. Good point.

Getting a medal for your country (who paid for your athletic run) is almost entirely a matter of having access to the right training etc, which is all political-process based.

And who gives a shit what the IOC bans. Defy those corrupt scum if the cause is worth it, imo. The fact is, sports are a distraction and are historically meaningless except for the occasional political advocate.

Personally I love it when conservatives get all riled up by athletes interrupting their pointless little ceremonies. Fuck em
 
Sounds like a myopic view of the Olympics. It was a proxy clash of values for most of the cold war (beyond the boycotts), hence the state run doping regimes in the Eastern Bloc.
Likewise the protest against the Nazis by black athletes, who had outright declared the '36 games as a showcase of racial superiority and refused to allow German Jews to participate (while other countries shamefully sidelined their Jewish athletes to appease the Nazis). It was the wins, not just the raised fists, which flew in the face of Nazi ideology.

Were there a lot of overt protests by Black athletes in 1936? Beyond the act of winning itself I don't know of any acts of protest being made ala Smith and Carlos.
Owens even later said he felt more welcomed in Berlin than he did back home.
 
Were there a lot of overt protests by Black athletes in 1936? Beyond the act of winning itself I don't know of any acts of protest being made ala Smith and Carlos.
Owens even later said he felt more welcomed in Berlin than he did back home.

Ah, no. I was confusing '36 with '68. There were protests from Jews and their supporters though, before and during. To the extent that Germany included a "token Jew" on the team.
 
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