Kim Boutin medal win
People have a tendency to be mean spirited. I'm saying that a lot more eloquently than the words ringing in my head.
I watched the speed skating race where the home country favourite got disqualified from her second place win, making way for the Canadian entrant to receive bronze.
What I don't get is the angst at the Canadian.
I want to say a number of things here. Many disagree with the call. But, I think the most important thing I can say is, neither the South Korean competitor, nor the Canadian one made the call and neither has the power to change it. Being mad at either of them is ridiculous.
Is this how the Canadian competitor wanted to win? I don't know. I would venture a guess and say that they probably feel it isn't ideal, but that there is nothing particularly wrong with it.
Obviously, these athletes are at the tops of their respective fields and they want to win because they've earned it. But, in every event, what that means is a little different. In virtually every event there are risks one can take which can improve your standing, but might come at a cost if they don't pay off.
The South Korean competitor made a move to secure to a higher ranked position early on in the race. Making a move to overtake another competitor is such a risk. As the overtaking skater the responsibility is on them to ensure that they don't hinder the other racers in doing so. And the officials make the decision as to whether or not sufficient interference actually happened. The skater took a risk. It didn't pay off. It is really that simple.
In the various heats and races there were likely many times a competitor decided NOT to overtake, not because they didn't think they had the strength or the speed, but because they didn't feel that they could overtake successfully. It is a component of this event. And, it means that the strongest and fastest are not always the winner. Do those that win due to luck of the draw for competitors and strategic positioning NOT deserve their medals? They absolutely deserve them. Competitors are all decided in an equal fashion and positioning during a race a combination of speed, ability and planning.
SHOULD the South Korean competitor have been disqualified? Personally, I didn't feel that they should have been. And many others felt the same. But, the officials didn't. And, this was a risk the skater knew and accepted before entering the event. Before making the move that triggered it. At the end of the day, being at the mercy of the officials and their rulings is a part of the sport.
Just because the South Korean initially finished second, doesn't necessarily mean that she was a technically better skater than those who placed after her. It only means that her outcome, in that particular race was better, if it was deemed valid. Which it wasn't.
So, while I can't know the mind of the Canadian skater, I can postulate that most likely she was fine with the outcome originally. She certainly didn't deserve the death threats and other hate directed towards her which she received.
The Canadian didn't even take the medal the Korean would have received. That went to the skater originally in 3rd. And yet, I'm not hearing about loads of hate towards that athlete.
People seem to be clinging on to the fact that it was a chance for the home team to take home a medal, the call which saw her DQd was questionable and the competitor who alternatively made it seemed pleased with the outcome.
I also watched Women's Luge last night. In the final run, an American luge athlete had an accident mid way through the run. She wasn't in medal contention. But, her accident meant many other athletes placed higher than they might have otherwise. Some may even be happy at the increase in standing. Do you think they are proud? An athlete was injured.
I don't for one second believe that anyone is happy about the misfortune. Or about the injury. Or in the case of the skating, the disqualification. But, just as the disqualification of the skater was the result of the decisions and actions and skill of the skater in the moment, so too was the accident for the luge athlete. She pushed too hard, or made a mistake or a gamble didn't pay off. And while NO ONE wishes these misfortunes on another athlete, they are a part of their respective sport.
And yet, no one seemed to harassing the athletes who benefited from the luge athlete's misfortune.
While her accident may not have propelled anyone onto the podium, those standings will affect their futures nonetheless. The higher they rank in the Olympics the more likely they are to receive more funding for their future Olympic attempts. The more sponsorships they will receive. And the athlete who injured herself? She may lose sponsors or funding or not have access to funding she might have had if she had completed her run and maintained her position.
The question as to whether or not another athlete should feel happy to have earned their medal if it came due to a disqualification or injury is really not much different than asking if they should feel happy for overcoming a competitor who didn't deliver their best performance. I imagine that the feeling is the same. These people strive to be the best. Beating someone on an off day feels no better than beating someone over a technicality. But, someone will beat them on their off days or due to their mistakes as well. It is a part of competition in general, and especially at this level.
I'll throw in a third example. In another speed skating event to secure positions for the finals, a skater from the Netherlands sought to overtake a Canadian near the end of the final lap. While overtaking, they got tangled in the Canadian skater's leg and sent them off the ice, allowing the Netherlands to finish second and taking the Canadians out. In this case, the interference was clear as day. And the judges disqualified the Netherland's team and advanced the Canadian team to the finals.
It was clear, the team from the Netherlands had the speed. Had they overtaken cleanly, they would have won cleanly as well and pushed the Canadian's out of contention. The Netherlands were also considered medal contenders in this event. A favourite even. NOT A SOUL would dare contend that the Canadians should be unhappy with the outcome. Not a soul claims that they STOLE the spot from the Netherlands. The Netherlands, due to circumstances and perhaps even strategy, found themselves behind the Canadians on that final lap. They made the decision to take the risk to overtake when they did. The decision didn't work for them. The risk did not pay off. If Canada ends up taking a medal in the finals, they won't feel bad about it.
The circumstances are virtually identical to the seemingly controversial outcome. The only tangible differences are that the interference and it's impact were much clearer and it didn't lead directly to another team getting a medal. But, that race could just have easily been a medal's race and while the impact was much clearer, it doesn't change anything. The rules are clear in speed skating. When overtaking it is your responsibility to ensure you don't impact the teams you're over taking and it is up to the judge to decide whether or not the interference happened.
The only people you can possibly blame are the skater for making the move, the judge for making the call or some combination of them.
I watched the speed skating race where the home country favourite got disqualified from her second place win, making way for the Canadian entrant to receive bronze.
What I don't get is the angst at the Canadian.
I want to say a number of things here. Many disagree with the call. But, I think the most important thing I can say is, neither the South Korean competitor, nor the Canadian one made the call and neither has the power to change it. Being mad at either of them is ridiculous.
Is this how the Canadian competitor wanted to win? I don't know. I would venture a guess and say that they probably feel it isn't ideal, but that there is nothing particularly wrong with it.
Obviously, these athletes are at the tops of their respective fields and they want to win because they've earned it. But, in every event, what that means is a little different. In virtually every event there are risks one can take which can improve your standing, but might come at a cost if they don't pay off.
The South Korean competitor made a move to secure to a higher ranked position early on in the race. Making a move to overtake another competitor is such a risk. As the overtaking skater the responsibility is on them to ensure that they don't hinder the other racers in doing so. And the officials make the decision as to whether or not sufficient interference actually happened. The skater took a risk. It didn't pay off. It is really that simple.
In the various heats and races there were likely many times a competitor decided NOT to overtake, not because they didn't think they had the strength or the speed, but because they didn't feel that they could overtake successfully. It is a component of this event. And, it means that the strongest and fastest are not always the winner. Do those that win due to luck of the draw for competitors and strategic positioning NOT deserve their medals? They absolutely deserve them. Competitors are all decided in an equal fashion and positioning during a race a combination of speed, ability and planning.
SHOULD the South Korean competitor have been disqualified? Personally, I didn't feel that they should have been. And many others felt the same. But, the officials didn't. And, this was a risk the skater knew and accepted before entering the event. Before making the move that triggered it. At the end of the day, being at the mercy of the officials and their rulings is a part of the sport.
Just because the South Korean initially finished second, doesn't necessarily mean that she was a technically better skater than those who placed after her. It only means that her outcome, in that particular race was better, if it was deemed valid. Which it wasn't.
So, while I can't know the mind of the Canadian skater, I can postulate that most likely she was fine with the outcome originally. She certainly didn't deserve the death threats and other hate directed towards her which she received.
The Canadian didn't even take the medal the Korean would have received. That went to the skater originally in 3rd. And yet, I'm not hearing about loads of hate towards that athlete.
People seem to be clinging on to the fact that it was a chance for the home team to take home a medal, the call which saw her DQd was questionable and the competitor who alternatively made it seemed pleased with the outcome.
I also watched Women's Luge last night. In the final run, an American luge athlete had an accident mid way through the run. She wasn't in medal contention. But, her accident meant many other athletes placed higher than they might have otherwise. Some may even be happy at the increase in standing. Do you think they are proud? An athlete was injured.
I don't for one second believe that anyone is happy about the misfortune. Or about the injury. Or in the case of the skating, the disqualification. But, just as the disqualification of the skater was the result of the decisions and actions and skill of the skater in the moment, so too was the accident for the luge athlete. She pushed too hard, or made a mistake or a gamble didn't pay off. And while NO ONE wishes these misfortunes on another athlete, they are a part of their respective sport.
And yet, no one seemed to harassing the athletes who benefited from the luge athlete's misfortune.
While her accident may not have propelled anyone onto the podium, those standings will affect their futures nonetheless. The higher they rank in the Olympics the more likely they are to receive more funding for their future Olympic attempts. The more sponsorships they will receive. And the athlete who injured herself? She may lose sponsors or funding or not have access to funding she might have had if she had completed her run and maintained her position.
The question as to whether or not another athlete should feel happy to have earned their medal if it came due to a disqualification or injury is really not much different than asking if they should feel happy for overcoming a competitor who didn't deliver their best performance. I imagine that the feeling is the same. These people strive to be the best. Beating someone on an off day feels no better than beating someone over a technicality. But, someone will beat them on their off days or due to their mistakes as well. It is a part of competition in general, and especially at this level.
I'll throw in a third example. In another speed skating event to secure positions for the finals, a skater from the Netherlands sought to overtake a Canadian near the end of the final lap. While overtaking, they got tangled in the Canadian skater's leg and sent them off the ice, allowing the Netherlands to finish second and taking the Canadians out. In this case, the interference was clear as day. And the judges disqualified the Netherland's team and advanced the Canadian team to the finals.
It was clear, the team from the Netherlands had the speed. Had they overtaken cleanly, they would have won cleanly as well and pushed the Canadian's out of contention. The Netherlands were also considered medal contenders in this event. A favourite even. NOT A SOUL would dare contend that the Canadians should be unhappy with the outcome. Not a soul claims that they STOLE the spot from the Netherlands. The Netherlands, due to circumstances and perhaps even strategy, found themselves behind the Canadians on that final lap. They made the decision to take the risk to overtake when they did. The decision didn't work for them. The risk did not pay off. If Canada ends up taking a medal in the finals, they won't feel bad about it.
The circumstances are virtually identical to the seemingly controversial outcome. The only tangible differences are that the interference and it's impact were much clearer and it didn't lead directly to another team getting a medal. But, that race could just have easily been a medal's race and while the impact was much clearer, it doesn't change anything. The rules are clear in speed skating. When overtaking it is your responsibility to ensure you don't impact the teams you're over taking and it is up to the judge to decide whether or not the interference happened.
The only people you can possibly blame are the skater for making the move, the judge for making the call or some combination of them.
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