?any one know?
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why is Australia so good at sports?
- Thread starter lenny&carl
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We have good whether for trainings all year round unlike the other countries that can only train for so long because off snow,cold whether Ect.
We have a kickass sports program that makes stars we have programs that find the best athletes and we use them.
And Mainly our will to win is greater than the other countries
We have a kickass sports program that makes stars we have programs that find the best athletes and we use them.
And Mainly our will to win is greater than the other countries
Borry
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Purely because it's a staple part of the country's culture, unlike most other countries.
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We are good at Sports - that nobody else plays (Cricket, Rugby, Rugby League, Netball, etc) Either that or we pound the crap out of small countries at events like the Commonwealth Games and proclaim to all & sundry how good we are.
Look at the 2 genuine global sports - Football & Atheltics. Our record in each of these has been nothing to write home about in recent years. Sports that have become far more internationalised like Golf & Tennis no longer see the Australian dominance of yesteryear.
We are pretty good at sport - but nothing like the 'greatest sporting nation' that the chest-beaters in this country like to proclaim that we are.
Look at the 2 genuine global sports - Football & Atheltics. Our record in each of these has been nothing to write home about in recent years. Sports that have become far more internationalised like Golf & Tennis no longer see the Australian dominance of yesteryear.
We are pretty good at sport - but nothing like the 'greatest sporting nation' that the chest-beaters in this country like to proclaim that we are.
Funding, funding, funding. Australians love playing sports and have the climate for it and when you combine that with generous sports funding, including the instititute of sports in various states, that gets your results. In the US they are funded by the college and university system on top of government funding and that puts them in number 1 spot. In China they are funded generously by the government and have moved to number 2. The old eastern block countries such as Germany and Russia used to have generous government funding but these days we are seeing them slide down the medal table to be replaced by better funded countries.
demon_chick7
Debutant
sport is apart of every Aussie's life! we grow up with sport and have had it drilled into us since birth that sport is good and we must participate! we also have top facilities and trainers. we have the money to spend on improving our athletes whereas other countries dont....some countries dont even have swimming pools or running tracks! thats why we are so good
Ray Nolan said:
The BPE strikes again. If we only appear to be successful by thrashing "little countries" as you say, then why aren't countries like Canada, New Zealand, England and India with equivalent levels of population and funding acheiving similar results as Australia?
Mikes4
Club Legend
Ray Nolan said:
When an extremely athletic 18 year old can earn minimum $30,000 a year playing one of the 3 main football codes in Australia, why would they bust their ass for years to earn next to nothing in Athletics?
The Olympics is a pretty good measure of how you compare to other nations in terms of being a great sporting nation or not. We have done pretty well the last few times.
Athens
1. USA 35 40 27
2. CHN 32 17 14
3. RUS 27 27 38
4. AUS 17 16 16
5. JPN 16 9 12
6. GER 14 16 19
7. FRA 11 9 13
8. ITA 10 11 11
9. KOR 9 12 9
10. GBR 9 9 12
Sydeney
1. USA 40 24 33
2. RUS 32 28 28
3. CHN 28 16 15
4. AUS 16 25 17
5. GER 13 17 26
6. FRA 13 14 11
7. ITA 13 8 13
8. NED 12 9 4
9. CUB 11 11 7
10. GBR 11 10 7
Atlanta
1. USA 44 32 25
2. RUS 26 21 16
3. GER 20 18 27
4. CHN 16 22 12
5. FRA 15 7 15
6. ITA 13 10 12
7. AUS 9 9 23
8. CUB 9 8 8
9. UKR 9 2 12
10. KOR 7 15 5
Ray Nolan said:
Are you a Pom , Ray ?? After reading this you it seems so .
Why don't you add Basketball , Baseball , Softball , Cycling and Swimming to those sports that nobody else plays and that we do well in .
Alkaline
Norm Smith Medallist
Thats like saying 'Why are Kenyans so good at running long distance'??
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The Australian Institute of Sport in which the Federal Government puts billions of dollars in the development of champions is unparalled in Western Democracies - it was modelled on the programs of the Soviet Satellites.
Really when you think about it - it is a criminal waste of money - what it should be going into is participation rather than elite training - don't get me wrong I love Gold Medals
Really when you think about it - it is a criminal waste of money - what it should be going into is participation rather than elite training - don't get me wrong I love Gold Medals
Mikes4
Club Legend
Contra Mundum said:
Correct, and the Federal Government is addressing this by pumping hundreds of millions of dollars into the Active Australia program. Check out the ASC website for more information.
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ALwaysNorth said:
I'm an Australian who's realistic enough to know that when it comes to truly international sport we are nowhere for the most part. Of the Sports you listed there only Cycling would fit that category, maybe Basketball as well at a stretch. Baseball, Softball, Swimming? Do me a favour! Half the countries in the world don't have a 50m pool or a Baseball Diamond!
We are a sporting nation which makes me want to ring the necks of all those who complain about too much sport on TV or spending too much money on it
The majority of Aussies love their sport and it shows with our results and even ratings for the big events. In ratings history I believe sport takes up a large number of the most watched shows ever
Our sporting stars are treated as gods, its something you want.
I actually think AFL football is holding us back, many top young sport stars would rather play AFL where you earn a min of $50,000 a year than work hard for nothing at these other sports. But as time goes in we will start getting better participation and will likely start to reguarly compete for top spot with the top nations in every sport
The majority of Aussies love their sport and it shows with our results and even ratings for the big events. In ratings history I believe sport takes up a large number of the most watched shows ever
Our sporting stars are treated as gods, its something you want.
I actually think AFL football is holding us back, many top young sport stars would rather play AFL where you earn a min of $50,000 a year than work hard for nothing at these other sports. But as time goes in we will start getting better participation and will likely start to reguarly compete for top spot with the top nations in every sport
Ray Nolan said:
So Australia's a joke because they don't dominate on a world stage at Association Football or Athletics - that's rich coming from someone who boasts about the history of Port Adelaide in a second tier competition in Australia . GET REALISTIC Ray when it comes to national importance Port Adelaide's SA history doesn't mean much .
So because other countries aren't great at particular sports it means that we shouldn't take any credit for being successful?Ray Nolan said:
As Mikes4 clearly pointed out with the Olympic Games medal tallies, we’re one of the best sporting nations in the world. We’re great at Swimming, Basketball, Softball, Hockey, Netball, Cycling, Baseball (Olympic Silver), Rowing, Horse Riding, gosh almost every sport.
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ALwaysNorth said:
A joke? No. Australia is a strong Sporting Nation. But the greatest like so many proclaim? No, and we never will be until we perform far better at the likes of Football & Atheltics.
To most Aussies soccer is for girls or homesick pommy wannabes like you .Ray Nolan said:
per head of population Australia would be one of if not the greatest sporting nation in the world ...you pommy unco's hate that tho don't you ?
Ray Nolan said:
I find it a little ironic that at the same time that our elite athletes are enjoying considerable olympic and Commonwealth success, our population has an obesity rate second only to the United States. Perhaps we should describe ourselves as a strong sports Watching nation.
Perhaps some of the funding that goes into the AIS should be channelled into participation programmes to get more Aussies active. Or at least athletes should repay their grants when they earn a certain amount - just like uni graduates pay HECS once their income goes over half of average wage.
Mikes4
Club Legend
Read a thread properly before you post, it can save you from looking silly.
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freo heave ho said:
Post #13
Contra Mundum said:
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Mikes4 said:
Ray Nolan said:
Australia is a great sporting nation as our Olympic medal tallies indicate. Per capita you can make an argument that we are the greatest, when you look at a wide range of all sports.
We don't need to perform better at Soccer to be the best. No country can be good at everything. Soccer is not the number one game here - that doesn't mean the country doesn't produce athletes. All it means is that our athletes try other sports instead (and usually do well at them).
As for Athletics, well that's a different story. The thing about Australia, is that we usually shoot above our weight in most sports when you compare performance to population. This is because of our strong sporting culture, good weather, outdoor lifestyle, and professional set-up at the AIS. In MOST sports, these attributes help, hence we shoot above our weight.
But in Athetics, they don't really help, because everybody runs. Everybody. Third-word country, like Ethiopia or Kenya? So what? They run. You don't need money to run. You don't even need shoes - all you need is feet! Do you need to "learn" a skill like Volleyball or Basketball? Not really, because it's just running. Everybody runs. Yes, coaches can help with technique, but not like other skill-based sports.
So, in Athletics, we can only ever be as good as our population will allow. We can't shoot above our weight, simply because the sport is so accessble to everyone in the world. In addition to that, we are at a genetic disadvantage to the African-Americans in the sprint races.
We will never be better at Athletics than what we currently are, and you know what? That doesn't affect Australia's standing as one of the worlds best sporting nations. Instead, what it does do is show you that Athletics is quite simply the world's most competitve sport. Everyone does it - even non-registered ahletes. It's the oldest sport.
I don't think people realise how huge it would be if an Australian man won a gold medal at the Olympics in a running event. Who was the last? Herb Elliot? It's almost impossibly difficult do to, and sometimes people expect too much from us in the world's most competitive sport.
