United Kingdom

Golfer Rory McIlroy and His Flagging Hopes to Compete in the Olympics

chen-shih-hsin
Chen Shih-hsin of “Chinese Taipei”

At the 2004 Athens Olympics, Chen Shih-hsin won Taiwan’s first ever gold medal. But as the taekwando lightweight stood on the podium after accepting her medal, neither the national anthem she listened to, nor the flag she saw rising were Taiwanese. They were symbols of a compromise Taiwan accepted when the IOC agreed to have Taiwan compete under the name “Chinese Taipei”, recognition that the People’s Republic of China was the only lawful representative of China.

National flags and anthems can be problematic at times because of the emotion they evoke.

We learned of another example recently.

One of the golfers in the world, Rory McIlroy, decided to forego with the Rio Olympics in August, stating that his concerns over the zika virus were enough to keep him home. McIlroy was not alone in that decision, but it was only recently learned that the mosquito-borne virus was not his chief issue. He stated recently in an interview with the Sunday Independent that the IOC told him that if he decided to attend the Rio Games he would have to decide under which flag he would compete: the flag of Great Britain or of Ireland.

rory-mcilroy-in-northern-ireland
Rory McIlroy

McIlroy is from Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom, but not part of Great Britain. I won’t go into the politics of this area, primarily because I don’t understand it well enough to try. But McIlroy felt the decision to participate in the Olympics was a decision to openly declare allegiance to a particular sovereignty, something he felt uncomfortable with.

“Not everyone is driven by nationalism and patriotism,” he told the Independent. “All of a sudden it put me in a position where I had to question who I am. Who am I? Where am I from? Where do my loyalties lie? Who am I going to play for? Who do I not want to piss off the most?” he said.

“I started to resent it and I do. I resent the Olympics Games because of the position it put me in, that’s my feelings towards it, and whether that’s right or wrong, it’s how I feel.”

Apparently, McIlroy explained his feelings in a series of texts to his friend and gold medalist of the Rio Olympic golf competition, Justin Rose.

Justin, if I had been on the podium (listening) to the Irish national anthem as that flag went up, or the British national anthem as that flag went up, I would have felt uncomfortable either way. I don’t know the words to either of them; I don’t feel a connection to either flag; I don’t want it to be about flags; I’ve tried to stay away from that.

Continue reading →

What is the Impact of Brexit on Sports in the United Kingdom?

Prime Minister David Cameron
Prime Minister David Cameron to step down.

On Thursday, June 23, we learned of the surprising affirmation by its citizens to remove the United Kingdom from the roll call of the European Union. This monumental vote, often called Brexit, has shaken economists and politicos around the world like a slow-motion punch to the gut, one much of the world watched hit in agonizing disbelief.

I’m not a political scientist or an economist, so I will leave the significantly more important impacts of Brexit on the global economy and political stability to others. I will instead focus on Brexit’s impact on sport. As a few of you may already know, the Ryder Cup, the biennial Europe-vs-US golf tournament, to be held in the US in the Fall, will go on despite the fact that six of the nine players of Team Europe are British.

As was explained in this nifty and swift Ryder Cup press release, “the criteria for being European in Ryder Cup terms is a geographical one (ie from countries who make up the continent of Europe) not a political or economic one (ie countries who make up the EU).”

Whew.

Great Britain balloon
Going it alone.

But in the long-term, there are potential negative consequences of Brexit, particularly on the state of sports in the United Kingdom.

  • Potential Loss of European Stars: Membership in the EU means citizens in member nations can work in any other member nation without a work permit. There is currently speculation that some 400 European players who currently have the automatic right to play soccer in England in the Premier League may have difficulty getting visas to continue their play. If that is the case in the coming years, fewer stars from the Continent may play in GB, thus begging the question, will the quality of play in British soccer gradually diminish?
  • Probable Loss of Funding: The EU has a funding arm to develop grassroots sports throughout the Union called Erasmus+, which splits some €265million across the 28 member nations in the period from 2014 to 2020. According to this article, “British organisations received around €1.3m in Erasmus+ sports funding, a significant amount at the grassroots level.”
  • Possible Loss of Opportunity to Host Premier Sporting Events: More than 500,000 visitors from former fellow EU member countries visited England during the 2012 London Olympics, who spent some 300 million in pounds. Brexit right now makes Great Britain a less attractive venue to host a European or global athletic event as visa requirements will make entry to Great Britain slower, likely encouraging athletes and tourists alike to opt for easier options. Organizers of super sporting events may re-think any plans for London.

With a loss of stars, funding and world-class sporting events, thanks to Brexit, the United Kingdom will likely have to work harder to maintain sporting excellence in the decades to come.

Continue reading →