How do you feel about Americans representing China in the Olympics?

I thought you loved Elon Musk.

 

Eileen Gu has a lot of reasons to compete for the PRC, including 30 million reasons.. As I said in the thread about her I'm not sure it's just the money but that probably has a lot to do it.

Zhu Yi / Beverley Zhu is the more interesting case. She is the skater that was born in CA and lived a big part of her life there. Her parents are PRC citizens with her dad a computer science professor at UCLA. Apparently the PRC had a program they started a few years ago to try to woo top athletes especially ethnic Chinese athletes to compete for the PRC. Unlike Eileen Gu who has been coy about her citizenship Zhu Yi actually relinquished her US citizenship. As an American she had an outside chance to compete for Team USA so it her case it might've given her a much better shot to at the Olympics for Team PRC. As is she was chosen as the lone PRC women's figure skater over some native athletes.

Her Olympics haven't been like Eileen Gu's either after falling and crying during her team performance which cost the PRC a chance at the podium she's been flamed on Chinese social media. I also don't know how much endorsement money she's getting and unless she pulls off a miracle this week likely won't medal.

Also is the the PRC Hockey team that is made up mostly of American and Canadian players. Many of these players had played in Beijing for a team that was part of the Russian KHL league. It sounds like in that case the PRC is being mum about dual citizenship as it doesn't sound like they've rejected their original citizenship. For these players it sounds like they have developed bonds in the PRC playing for the Beijing team but also given that this was the worst hockey team in the KHL and Team PRC is one of the worst in the Olympics they likely don't have a shot making it for the Canadian and US teams.
https://sports.yahoo.com/meet-the-american-made-team-china-011658456.html

 

I understand it's easy to call these people "traitors" for not representing their home countries, especially going to a country like the PRC. The opportunity to go to the Olympics is very rare. In many sports it is harder to get to the Olympics than it is to make it to the MLB, NBA, NHL or other major league level competition. It can be a life changing experience and for someone like me who does a sport with no major league it is the pinnacle of achievement.

Many athletes especially in many of these sports it is an all consuming obsession. They aren't doing the sport for patriotism but because it is what defines themselves. If competing for another country gives them the best shot at the Olympics I can certainly see why they would want to.

Here's a personal story. I was a decent Judoka but certainly not the upper echelon. When I was in grad school I did a semester at the National University of Singapore. I got to train with the Singapore National Judo Team and even defeated some of their national team players. That's far more of a reflection on the Singapore team than it is me. As a smaller country to the Singapore could bypass some of the competition requirements to get to the Olympics. I was tempted to give up my US citizenship to become a Singaporean if that meant I could go to the Olympics.

 

He’s a Texan

thousands of years when humans colonize Mars and other planets

the galaxy would thank him for saving the species

 

I'm for the individual deciding what's best for them, whether it was Chen repping US or Gu repping China (or Andre Blanche repping the Philippines)


Kanye:

"You see, if you ever wanted to ever be anything
There'd always be somebody that shoot down any dream
There'll always be haters, that's the way it is
Hater [explicit] marry hater［explicit] and have hater kids"

 

You don't have to root for them.

I'm just explaining the mindset. If you've dedicated your life to getting the Olympics the country you do it for might seem less important than just being an Olympian.

 

I see you are very smart sir

 

I may speak for the minority in the D&D
But I root for the Rockets
@Clutch
@Os Trigonum
@basso
@J.R.
@Space Ghost

 

This.

We may disapprove of her decision. But isn't it great that -- as an American -- she has the freedom to do so?

 

Yeah but Chen was born in the USA like Springsteen

there’s a factor that nobody is talking about

1. The good looking factor
China wouldn’t accept her If she was Aquafina .
That was one of the criticisms of Shang Chi from China

@Jontro

 

just wanna chime in to say yo fukkk awkwajarjar

 

I don't like it, but it's her right and I don't think the politics should get in front of an athletes decision to compete or get paid.

While she's now a (luxury) sock puppet for the PRC, the Olympics has always been a multi-billion dog eat dog business that puts mostly children in an environment to compete and "sacrifice" at the highest levels in order to medal and represent something larger than they are. The fact that countries buy their way into locations or look the other way during scandals by essentially burning the athletes or whistleblowers removes any notion of the Purity of the Sport to me.

I mean Russia might not have these medals officially on record, but they still bought their way out of another doping scandal.

If you aint cheatin, you aint tryin.

If I was an athlete forced to perform under that creed, might as well do the math and fatten my bank account.

 

She would be in China either way. She would be an Olympian either way.

I don't have a problem with those who switch country affiliates to get there, but if you don't, I think it is wrong to represent a country you've never lived in.

 

I know that Gu would be an Olympian regardless, but there are Americans on the China hockey team who would not be on the USA team. The figure skater also, most likely, would not have made the USA team.

 

Which I understand the choice they make. I won't knock somebody taking their shot.

 

Tricky one. I mean, Hakeem represented the US in the Olympics in 1992, not Nigeria...

 

Nigeria probably wouldn't have been able to qualify for the olympics even with Hakeem - they may have not had enough players even back then.