My Take | There’s more to winning than medals as this Games shows
- Gauging Olympics success is not always a simple matter. But the ultimate winners from Tokyo are all those who overcame unprecedented difficulties to compete
Who will emerge as the winners as the Games reach their conclusion today? China has led the medal table for most of the event but faces a final showdown with the US. Hong Kong’s athletes have exceeded expectations, securing a record five medals, including a gold.
Gauging success is, however, not always a simple matter. One of the Post’s graduate trainees drew my attention to a little controversy over the medal table (thanks Cyril). The International Olympic Committee ranks teams according to the number of gold medals they have won. Silver and bronze only come into play if there is a tie. This is followed in most parts of the world.
But some leading media outlets in the US adopt a different approach. They rate the teams according to the total number of medals won. It results in the US usurping China and leading the table.
The practice has sparked criticism on social media, especially on the mainland. But the approach has long been adopted in the US. It was an issue in 2008, when America’s focus on total medals allowed it to “lead” the table for the Beijing Games. The practice is also used by the US Olympic Committee.
It has been argued that the total medals approach is more in keeping with the Olympic spirit as it recognises the significant achievements of those securing silver and bronze. But this overlooks the distinction between the medals. What is the point of having Olympic champions if their gold medals are equated with those of athletes they have outperformed?