Olympic Medal Count or GO Canada GO!

[kandrathe]

When professionals were barred from the Olympics, what you'd see is the USSR/China dominate those fields. It's somewhat difficult to go for world championship when you aren't paid by the government to train, and have to work a 9 to 5 job.

I know. It's still that way with some sports. Cuban baseball, for example, dominates because MLB players from the US don't compete (probably wouldn't pass the drug tests). Many of the top players from every country have sponsors and endorsement contracts that subsidized their athletic training. In some sports in the US, it is the rich peoples kids that get the opportunity because its their parents who have the means to get them up through the lower levels of training.

My wife spends at least $100/week on skating pros and ice time. Not to mention the additional costs for foot doctors and minor surgery. She has been doing that since she was 13 and could get money working a regime of babysitting gigs. She is a semi-casual skater too, only training 2-3 times per week. If she had ever wanted to be an Olympic ice skater she would have needed to begin daily training 5 or 6 years earlier. Most of the people you find in the rinks have parents who can afford an additional $1000/month(per child) at least for sports training. Once you get good enough, a corporation might step in to sponsor your training.