Rio 2016 Olympics: British sport's (winning) management becomes model for the country

Unlike Chariots of Fire, the film that forever enshrined in the collective imagination the spirit of British sport's quest for excellence. Great Britain's Olympic victory in Rio de Janeiro will become a model for the United Kingdom after its exit from the European Union. The Sunday Times has sworn by it, revealing in a colorful front-page article on Sunday how the government is considering applying to the country the same principles that made British sport great. After all, if Great Britain is the first country in history to improve on the already excellent result of the home games in London in 2012 (65 medals then, 67 today), there must be a reason. It is not certain that the answer constitutes good news for the citizens of the Kingdom of Her Majesty Elizabeth II.

Successes

In fact, the success of British sport depends on adopting a simple system: fund those who win or progress, and remove those who fail. The financial institutions comprise a fund called UK Sport, which is funded largely by proceeds from the National Lottery and which was set up by the first Blair government in 1997. At the start of each four-year Olympic period, UK Sport determines which and how. How much money should be given to each association and what goals are to be achieved. During the games court rulings. Those who win or improve will see their money confirmed or increased (which at the Rio Games was just over €400 million). Whoever loses will see it reduced or cancelled. The goal is to fund excellence only. It is a choice that, if applied to an entire country, could create more than one problem. But what the UK is relentlessly pursuing is in the field of sports, where, for example, after London, thanks to the 12 medals won in cycling, the funds allocated to the Federation were increased by 16%, while the funds allocated to table tennis were abolished. Completely. But ironically, with this standard, some of the most played sports in Great Britain, such as basketball and volleyball, are not funded. Some have also criticized the ideological approach to this type of choice which, paradoxically, is reminiscent of the five-year plans of Soviet memory. Not to mention the opposite of the Olympic principle established by de Coubertin. In this case, in fact, the important thing is to win, not to participate.

Political speech

On the other hand, convinced that helping everyone is only a source of generalized mediocrity, Prime Minister Theresa May is preparing in her keynote speech at the Conservative Party conference in October to explain how the Olympic strategy will also be applied in the industrial field. By funding those sectors that constitute the pinnacles of excellence in the British economy and leaving the rest to its fate, given that EU money, which keeps many British companies afloat, is bound to disappear soon. In conclusion, anyone in Great Britain who decides to pursue an unsuccessful sport in the next few years is being asked to change their country. Or to open his wallet.