Editorial

A4

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An exciting weekend in Beijing saw Canadian Olympic athletes step on to the podium seven times over two days.

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The medals, including two gold, ended a week of frustration for Canada. Olympic followers sat bewildered as countries such as Zimbabwe, Togo, Uzbekistan and Ethiopia climbed on the medal list ahead of Canada.

The weekend's success by Canada's rowers and female wrestlers helped ease the pain somewhat, but the question still remains. Could we, or more importantly should we, be doing better in international athletic competitions?

We can and we should.

Olympic success serves as a reflection of the country's attitude towards fitness and training. Canada falls short on that front.

We can't blame our athletes. Their sacrifices are remarkable. With few exceptions, Canada's top athletes lack the coaching, facilities and funding to challenge the world leaders.

While it has taken a few small steps – $24 million this year for the summer Olympic program and another $24 million for the Road to Excellence program – Canada continues to seriously under fund athletics.

Funding Olympic athletes is not about funding famous sports figures. It's about spending on the health of Canada. Money spent today on sports will return some day in the form of health-care savings.

In an era when youth obesity is seen as a crisis, it's critical the government fund sports programs. Encouraging youth to take advantage of those programs, however, requires roles models, such as Olympic medal winners.

If Canada needs a blueprint for success, they need to look down under, where Australia, with two-thirds our population, has placed themselves among the world's sporting elite.

Like the Aussies, Canadians can do better. They must do better. Sporting success is not a privilege, it's a vital component to a healthy nation.