Only one chance to win gold every 4 years...?

Question

Is not indicative of who's the best ever, just on that day, because anyone could have an off day and anyone could kick butt any day of the week or any day of the YEAR. One chance every 4 years isn't enough to prove you're the best. You should have to do consistently well several times.

Answer 1

In a perfect world, yes.

But in this world, athletes spend four years (or more) working extremely hard for just a moment in the Olympics. Everything they do is for that one moment.

Answer 2

That is how true winners and legends are born. They come through when it counts. No event is completed on just one day. They have qualifying rounds and Olympic trials. There is a lot you dont see.  

Answer 3

It all depends on how these olympians train. If they go into the olympics thinking they are the best and don't train for it they are in for it. Michael Phelps is a good example of someone who trained hard and from that he won 8 gold medals he is the best olympian of all time. Some of it is luck but not a lot of it is.

Answer 4

Besides the Olympics, there are many other World Championship events for most of the sports. e.g. swimming, gymnastics...etc. and then there is the World Cup for football (or soccer as you wish), all the Opens for tennis....

plenty of gold to win and chances to break the world record (that's why the World Record is often different from the Olympics Record)

missing out on gold in the olympics is definately not the end of the world :)

Answer 5

Agreed totally. But it is still heart breaking when you don't where it's really count. IT IS THE OLYMPICS....and all the "at their best" gathered. Like the Australian silver medalist swimmer, Eamon Sullivan said...he preferred gold rather world record.

Answer 6

it indicates who prepared the best for the olympics. of course luck is a factor. luck on performance and luck on judges.    

Answer 7

Most competitors don't just compete for the Olympics.  They are generally either amateur or professional athletes, and compete in multiple competitions leading to the Olympics, and will continue after that.  Since I don't know much about many of the sports, I'll use tennis.  Clearly, tennis hosts the U.S. Open after this week.  The same goes for most sports.  So the Olympics is just another competition along the road.  Although the most important one for most athletes.  Another example is basketball, with the FIBA World Championships I believe they're called.

Pay attention next time commentators talk about a particular athlete in any event, you might catch them talking about so-and-so athlete competing well in the world championships of whatever sport they are participating in.  The Olympics just happens to be another big competition for the athletes to compete in, although it would be the biggest competition of them all for most of them.

Answer 8

plus it is not fair to compare someone like Michael Phelps to a team like misty may and kerri walsh. yeah, he has like 16 olympic medals but he also has more opportunity to win medals. It is unfair to say that he is the best olympic athlete ever, he is only the most decorated...there is a huge difference