As for the Olympics, don't you dare mention the B-word

Printed in The Kingston Whig Standard, July 2, 2008.
By Diana Davis Duerkop

Parents spend a lot of time helping their offspring understand the consequences of their behaviour. If you leave your clothes on the bedroom floor, one day, you won’t have any clean clothes to wear. If you don’t lock your bike securely, someone may steal it. If you drive a vehicle after drinking, you could be in an accident and cause tremendous harm to yourself and others
Young people aren’t the only ones that have to learn about consequences. Organizations, including governments, also need to understand the consequences of their decisions.
Talk of a Canadian boycott of the Beijing Olympic Games has thankfully dropped to a whisper. The consequences of boycotting are now apparent not only to athletes, but also to the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) and to the government of Canada. Many people do not realize that the decision about whether or not to go will be made by the COC, not the government. It is in this context that the undeniable link between sports and politics is demonstrated once again.
Let’s look at a few of the negatives of missing these Olympics. It costs the COC a lot of money to send a team composed of athletes, mission staff and medical support. The money doesn’t come from the federal government because the COC is a private, not-for-profit organization responsible for Canada’s participation in the Olympics. The COC raises money through sponsorships, licensing goods and services, and donations. Interestingly, when the COC wilted under the federal government’s pressure not to go to Moscow in April 1980, the compensation package was about $3.2 million in 2008 dollars. Given that costs have increased and there are more athletes and support staff, it will cost around $5 million to send this team to Beijing. Much of this money has already been spent.
All the International Federations that organize sports on the Olympic program hold elections of executive and committees in the host city prior to the games. Key decisions about the sport are made at these meetings. If Canadians do not attend these meetings, they won’t have a voice or get elected, and Canada’s representation and ability to influence international sports will be greatly diminished. Election to these positions requires years of politicking; if missing this time, it is doubtful that Canadians will be elected even at the next meetings in 2012. Our ability to lead and influence in the international arena is therefore compromised.
If we didn’t attend the games, Canada’s reputation would suffer tremendously, not only in the sport community but in the social, economic, education and political spheres. A few illustrations. Canada is, for example, investing $13 billion in the Port of Prince Rupert and railway lines leading to it, to develop a transpacific trade corridor. The city is to become the gateway to Pacific nations from mid-America. Any uncertainty around Canada’s support for China, a significant trading partner, would be disastrous economically.
One other illustration. Since 2001, Canada has signalled its interest in once again holding one of the non-permanent seats on the United Nation’s Security Council. It wouldn’t be too far-fetched to think that China, a permanent member, would not welcome Canada at the table if it boycotts their games, and might actively campaign against Canada.
All this is not to ignore the people for whom the games are organized. Rather, it is intended to illustrate the interrelationship of sport and politics, and importance of being aware of some of the less obvious consequences of boycotting Beijing.
The biggest impact a boycott would have would be on the athletes. The road to the Olympics is long, difficult, and rewarding. One has only to follow the process to understand that few Canadians actually get to an Olympic Games. Canada’s men’s basketball team is in the final stages of preparation for the last opportunity to qualify for Beijing. Only 20 players in all of Canada were even invited to try-out for the team. The team must place in the top three at the conclusion of the July tournament to get to Beijing. This is a monumental task, and one that head coach Leo Rautins relishes. You see, he was a player on the men’s basketball team that didn’t go to the 1980 Olympics in Moscow. He knows the meaning of a boycott because he was one of the disappointed athletes. And just what did that boycott accomplish?
Let’s not even whisper of boycotts. They do more harm than good.
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Diana Davis Duerkop is a former Vice-President of the Canadian Olympic Committee. She is a board member of the Kingston & District Sports Hall of Fame and Sport Kingston, and lives in Kingston.