[RC] Response to the [RC] WEG- the USA team - tim miller
Truman said:
I think the problems we have had in the last few WEC's has more to do
with the fact that the rest of the world has caught up and in many cases
surpassed the US program. This is not unusual in sports. Look at
international basketball. In 1992 when the "dream team" of NBA all
starts played in the Olympics. At that time all the other countries were
honored to just play against them. The opposing players would get the
dream teams autographs after the games. They walked away with the
Olympics.
The rest of the world went to work and as a result in the last
Olympics the US NBA allstart team had to work hard just to win the Bronze
and they were lucky to do that. The rest of the world just got a lot better.
I think bottom line that is what has happened in endurance.
Agree. Left unsaid was the term "subsidy". A
number of nations began targeting athletic youth and provided subsidies as
well as an entire framework for their growth. The development of
talented European baseketballers didn't just happen. In effect, the
selected became professionals as young teenagers. They played together for
years. We can no longer throw a bunch of professionals together for six
weeks and expect to win on talent alone. Subsidies made the
"catching up" evolve faster than if each individual was left to their own
devices.
This appears to be occurring in some
nations with the sport of endurance.
There is a considerable expense involved for anyone
aspiring to this level, and in this country, that falls primarily on the
individual competitor.
The financial and time demands are in part
self-selective.
We have a different playing field. Not saying it's
right or wrong, but it is fact.
You're arguably in the best run region in the
country. One of the many things done well is the polling you do.
Here's one for you-
Are you personally aware of any high quality rider/horse
teams that refrain from entering the selection process primarily because of time
and/or money constraints?
