Sunday, July 27, 2008

China's Olympics, let it be sports only


for me,Olympics, means the five colored interlinked rings, representing the five contents. Olympics always meant fun, excitement and joy. It also meant true friendship, fair play and joy in the air for everybody. I came from an era when we used to wait, and glue ourselves on front of the then silver screen. that time TV was only black and white, but that didn't deter us from seeing the teems in their national colors, at least in our minds and imagination. actually this helped our generation to memorize the color schemes of the different participating teems, along with their national flags.



when my dad bought us our first color TV, I was amazed to see a different world from that window. Color TVs made it easier for Olympic fans,and especially to soccer lovers-to distinguish easily between teems, and spot right away where the ball is going, it was really hard to follow the ball on silver screens decades ago.



At our early days, we didn't bother about who is boycotting the games. only if the games have football matches" soccer" we would have been concerned only if the Pillet's teem, who was dobbed " the black diamond", how can watch soccer without Brazil!



around four decades ago, when I was born,Boycotting the Olympic games, was a term used only if a country is raging war against another, and you can see for yourself from the history of boycotting Olympic games- I have attached a copy from wikipedia down below- but nowadays, boycotting became a tool to threaten countries for various reasons.



should Olympic games be only about nationalism,patriotism, politics, or it should only about sports?



the answer will vary according to which shows you feet in. but for me, sports should be always kept intact, hence boycott of the games should only be used if a harm is done, of war is raged, or something of this volume.



what is going in China now, the the threats and shadows of boycotting its games, is not going to do the games any better. on the contrary, threats like these would jeopardize the sports events, and encourage politicians and activist to destroy and distort the true spirit of sports.



Do we have to twist any country's hand to act as we like?

Politically,

the facts says NO.

and there are various examples

US invasion to Iraq

former Soviet Union and it's invasion to Afghanistan

these are only few of many examples in recent history, and we should learn from history that,
we don't have to force any change. we don't have to impose change. if you force something, you'll break it, or it will go out of your control, exactly like what happened in Iraq.
China is not Iraq. China holds more than 20% of the world's population
nobody would like to see Great China broken apart, and fifth of the world's population asking refuge, like what is happening with millions Iraqis and Afghanis now
let Ti bit to take it's time.
and let the games be only about sports
and one more thing
when deal with any people
you have to respect their believes and their way of doing things
and remember

PS
Do you know that :

The Olympic Games begun at Olympia in Greece in 776 BC. The Greek calendar was based on the Olympiad, the four-year period between games. The games were held every four years from 776 BC to 393 AD, when they were abolished by the Christian Byzantine Emperor Theodosius I. The ancient Olympic Games lasted for 1170 years.
The successful campaign to revive the Olympics was started in France by Baron Pierre de Coubertin late in the 19th century. The first of the modern Summer Games opened on Sunday, March 24, 1896, in Athens, Greece. The first race was won by an American college student named James Connolly.




Olympic Games Boycotts and Political Events
1956 Melbourne
Lichtenstein, the Netherlands, Spain, and Sweden boycotted the games in protest of the Soviet invasion of Hungary. Egypt, Lebanon, and Iraq also boycotted as a result of the Suez crisis. The People's Republic of China refused to participate due to the inclusion of the Republic of China (Taiwan).


1964 Tokyo
South Africa was banned by the IOC from taking part due to its oppressive apartheid regime. This ban lasted until 1992.


1968 Mexico City
In Mexico City, 10 days before the Olympics began, students protesting against the government were surrounded by the army who opened fire, killing 267 and injuring more than 1,000. During the Games, American athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos were expelled for raising their fists in a "black power" salute on the winners' podium.


1972 Munich
11 Israeli athletes were taken hostage by Palestinian terrorists 'Black September', to protest against the holding of 234 Palestinian prisoners in Israel. The terrorists murdered two of their captives, then, as the result of a bungled rescue attempt by the authorities, the remaining nine captives were killed alongside three of their captors.


1976 Montreal
26 African countries boycotted the Games in response to New Zealand's inclusion. Earlier that year a New Zealand team had undertaken a three-month rugby tour of segregated South Africa, but the IOC refused to ban them. The Republic of China (Taiwan) team was also barred from entering the country, then allowed to enter if they agreed not to compete as "the Republic of China"; the Taiwanese considered this unacceptable and withdrew.


1980 Moscow
Due to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, US President Carter called upon the U.S. Olympic Committee to boycott the Games. The Olympic Charter requires such committees to "resist all pressures of any kind whatsoever, whether of a political, religious or economic nature," but theory and practice diverge. The Americans stayed home, and in total 62 countries including West Germany and Japan refused to attend. In all, 80 nations participated in the Games, down from 122 nations in Munich. The USSR won 195 medals, but allegations of cheating tainted this astonishing result.


1984 Los Angeles
14 countries, including the USSR, boycotted the Games in what was widely seen as revenge for the Moscow Games four years earlier, though the official line was that they had security concerns. Ironically, China chose this year to return to the Games after a 32-year absence.


1988 Seoul
After failing to be recognized as co-host of the Games, North Korea (which was still technically at war with the South) boycotted the Games, with Cuba and Ethiopia joining them in solidarity. However there were no widespread boycotts for the first time since 1972.


1992 Barcelona
It was a rare Olympic games with no boycotts. The Soviet Union had broken up, and the new Russian republics competed under one banner. The Berlin Wall had been torn down - so East and West Germany competed together as a united country. South Africa returned to the Games after the end of apartheid and 32 years of sporting isolation.


2008 Beijing
There is talk of a Boycott to the Beijing Olympic Games due to China's treatment of the Tibetan people, and other human rights abuses

1 comment:

Yar said...

"...But for me, sports should be always kept intact, hence boycott of the games should only be used if a harm is done, of war is raged, or something of this volume."

Khaled, I like these sentences.
you right.

success