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Video: Sporting goods as a national idea
2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55
The history of the expulsion of Russia from the Olympics and other sports events has its advantages. Finally, we can honestly look at Russian sport and think: do we need it in this capacity? Why do we need so many athletes in the State Duma? And there, you see, we will stop hiding the unsightly Russian reality behind the screen of exaggerated sports achievements …
Who should be punished
“We are being punished for the Crimea,” ordinary Russians, officials, sofa analysts and other experts of all stripes are sure. And in many ways they are right. It is enough to glance at the pumped American tennis players. Or Norwegian skiers, all of whom suffer from asthma, and therefore "forced" to take medications for life.
A therapeutic exception that allows you to gulp any pills in handfuls - it turned out, for whom an exception is needed, and for Russia - there is nothing to simulate illness here, go out on the bench.
It is clear that there are enough bribes, doping, and other ugly stories in the dirty cesspool called “world sport”. And this makes it even more offensive. How is it - everyone is cheating, but for some reason only Russia was punished? But this is the first mistake of our sport: if you really want to play with crooks, study their rules and play by them. Otherwise, there was nothing to sit down at the table.
And it would also be nice to sit down and study the sports system of the opposing countries, and understand how they manage to get dry from numerous doping scandals, instead of wringing their hands.
At whose expense is the banquet?
For some it will be a revelation, but … in the USA, for example, there is NO Department of Sports. There is NO specially appointed person, that is, a minister who is authorized to report to the head of state on how many medals from the Olympics were brought by American athletes again.
All major sports organizations operate on a voluntary basis, living on the money of large corporations and sponsors. Sports in the United States is a commercial story, with billions of dollars in revenues (not expenses) and with minimal government involvement - with the exception of lawmaking. At the same time, a dozen Russian cities could live on the budget of individual sports organizations. And for several years.
In the UK, the picture is different. There is a post of minister responsible for the development of sports and culture. There is also a state program for the support and development of sports throughout the country, including serious state support for athletes who are being prepared for the Olympics. But, as in the United States, business structures and sponsorships play a big role. And the British try to spend public money only on those sports where there is a real chance of getting medals.
Someone will say: Russian sports also have many sponsors. Only at which of the trustees you do not stick - everything is entirely state-owned companies, Russian Railways or Gazprom. This means that Russian sport, in fact, lives at the expense of a simple Russian taxpayer, who, in conditions of tough survival, would be ready to forget about medals for a while, but who will give it. And now he will have to pay for something that will not happen: fines in WADA, money already allocated for the next two Olympics, which we will miss …
By the way, the British system - a reasonable combination of state support and raised funds - is considered exemplary in Europe. But the system, where the development of sports is solely on the shoulders of the state, is extremely vulnerable for one simple reason.
If any American swimmer gets caught on doping - who will you have any complaints against? That's right, to a private shop. To a specific federation that exists on sponsorship money. But not to the country as a whole.
Quasi-elite
It is not surprising that with such and such multibillion-dollar infusions, sport in Russia has become more than just a sport. With his help, careers in politics are made. Nowhere in the world will you find so many former athletes in the local parliament or at the head of the regions as in Russia.
Of course, among our athletes in the government there are many clever and clever people, and just good people. But, you must admit, something is wrong in a country with social elevators, since all personnel holes need to be urgently plugged with people from sports. An excessively large number of political - and not only - careers through sports is a direct consequence of the absence of political elites in Russia as such.
Of the 450 deputies of the State Duma, 17 are people with a sports past. Of these, three are biathletes, two hockey players, boxers and even one water polo player. And only one deputy-athlete has nothing to do with United Russia - also, by the way, a reason to think.
It would be fine if the former Olympic champions went to the State Duma to help their professional plot … in 90% of cases, the legislative activity of such deputies concerns anything but sports.
For example, twice the deputy, boxer Nikolai Valuev is extremely concerned about the health of Russian animals and the environment, and also at one time actively advocated for raising the retirement age. Another famous Russian fighter, Buyvasar Saytiev, became a deputy in 2016 and during this time managed to have a hand in 31 legislative initiatives. Among them - the bill on patriotic education and opposition to the United States, which, however, was rejected.
Two gymnasts, who, fortunately, have already left the walls of parliament, Svetlana Khorkina and Alina Kabaeva, do not reach the Duma records of their colleagues. On Khorkina's account - only 8 bills, Kabaeva took part in the development of only five, including the scandalous "Law of Dima Yakovlev" banning the adoption of Russian orphans by US citizens.
In addition, the best representatives of the sports elite get to the State Duma. Others regularly appear on the pages of yellow publications or appear in criminal chronicles. So-so elite, frankly.
Pinpoint strike
Of course, after 2014, the West is looking for any opportunity to strike at Russia, and first of all, at its elite. And if there are entirely former athletes, God himself ordered them to hit there.
In addition, some insiders directly associate the doping scandal with the desire to cover up someone's well-known names - those who came into politics precisely through sports. So loud that the price of 4 years of suspension seemed reasonable to someone. It is a pity, by the way, that these names were not the defector Rodchenkov, nor WADA was published. But that's another story …
In fact, all these years big sport has been a sublimation for Russia, virtual reality, a substitute for real achievements. The blow from the West - if it really was the result of a conspiracy of the world elites against Russia - was calculated very accurately: a very powerful propaganda resource of "sports obsession" was knocked out of the hands of the Kremlin, which was used very effectively inside the country. Where the domestic big sport will perk up now and where our whole pseudo-elite will flow - one can only guess.
We'll check it out in four years.
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