What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (Full Version)

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raspberry331 -> What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/20/2008 9:25:34 PM)

What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics?



Random -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/21/2008 5:44:43 AM)

7 is too young.

83 is too old.

Somewhere in between is the line! [8D]



garsyt -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/21/2008 12:38:05 PM)

7 is WAY to young! I would say at a person would at least need to be a teenager. To me 13 years old is mighty young too, but I can see it.

As to too old - When you can't compete in your sport effectively anymore THEN you are too old.

Blessings,

Garsy



bzirk -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/21/2008 12:43:23 PM)

Don't know the answer to this question. I guess the only definitive I can give is that I'll know it when I see it. [8D]

In the meantime, my thoughts on Dara Torres:

YOU GO, GIRL!



stellaluna -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/21/2008 12:48:08 PM)

Too young is determined by the olympic committee--under 16, I think is the rule. There is no too old. If you are able to compete and win a slot on your country's team, then you'll find yourself at the olympics.



jazzact13 -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/21/2008 12:48:59 PM)

Why should there be an age limit?

Particularly in regards to how old is too old, we're seeing athletes in most sports who can still play at the highest level at ages when most other are unable to. I would say that should have more to do with ability then with some kind of arbitrary age limit.

In regards to how young, it may be a bit more tricky, but again, much the same things apply. Very young children would simply not have the strength, stamina, and coordination to do those kinds of things. Some teenages might, and if so, why should they not be allowed to compete?



kernsfamily -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/21/2008 12:50:26 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: stellaluna

Too young is determined by the olympic committee--under 16, I think is the rule. There is no too old. If you are able to compete and win a slot on your country's team, then you'll find yourself at the olympics.


which is why there is a Jr. AND Sr. "Olympics" program.....

so, no one is even going to "investigate" or "check out" the girls from china who were OBVIOUSLY too young..and, thus, not "eligible" to compete?



uncabeeil -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/21/2008 3:21:56 PM)

quote:

so, no one is even going to "investigate" or "check out" the girls from china who were OBVIOUSLY too young..and, thus, not "eligible" to compete?
As much as you may not like the results, they were investigated by the IOC, which found no violation. Please don't get all Bela Caroli on me, I don't think they were old enough either. But the investigation was done and we should just move on.

Age limits are for the birds. If a kid's good enough to make the team in a sport, they should be allowed to compete. Nobody said anything when 14 year olds were winning ice skating medals. Maybe because they were American 14 year olds? And I haven't heard much fuss about those Chinese gymnasts outside of the US media. Let's be honest here, if a kid is good enough to make an Olympic team, they've survived some pretty intense training and competition already. One more meet/game/set isn't, in most cases, going to cause any more harm than has already been done.



Miss Giggles -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/21/2008 7:34:15 PM)

There really shouldn't be a min age or max age.

They should be more concerned with the rent an athletes from other countries and the pros.



mapachito13 -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/21/2008 7:39:35 PM)

When you look at the amount of medals we've won anyway why should we get upset for not getting more? In some of the individual competitions it didn't amount to a hill of beans anyway. Besides I would mke it 14 years old as the minimum that would allow people to realistically compete in 3-4 Olympics.



Bobby -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/22/2008 7:29:34 AM)

The Federation Internationale Gymnastique is investigating the age scandal now. Under FIG rules established in 1996, gymnasts must turn 16 by December 31 of the year they are competing in the competition to be eligible for the event. By that rule, a 15-year old gymnast is permitted to compete in the Olympics if they are to turn 16 before December 31. In 1996, Dominique Moceanu participated as a 14-year old because she was turning 15 before December 31 when the minimum age was 15.

That rule is similar to Little League's rule changing the age limit from must not be older than 12 on August 1 to May 1 in order to allow players who were 12 for the majority of their season to play in the tournaments.

The International Boxing Association (AIBA) established a minimum age of 17 and a maximum age of 34 for the Olympics.



kernsfamily -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/22/2008 8:57:52 AM)

quote:

Nobody said anything when 14 year olds were winning ice skating medals. Maybe because they were American 14 year olds?


no...that's not it...

it was because there was NO RULE for a "minimum age" (or, if there was one, one that we actually abided by)....and, second, we weren't LYING about their age.

two distinct differences....regardless of where they are from



lexie -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/22/2008 9:07:15 AM)

Honestly, I don't see what the big deal about minimum ages.

I was a competitive figure skater growing up. At the age of 11 I was training 7 days a week...about 17 hours during a regular week, 20-25 hours when there was a competition coming up. That is a lot for an 11 year old but I loved it. Now, I wasn't close to Olympic calibre, but if I'm already training that much at a young age and I'm good enough for the Olympics, why not let me compete? It's the same as other competitions I would be competing in.

As for too old...Canada had a 50 year old fencer on the team! She won an Olympic medal back in the 80's for China. She had been coaching in Canada all these years, and was just as good as the kids she was coaching!



garsyt -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/22/2008 11:18:11 AM)

actually the minimum age has changed over the years.

quote:

Age falsification has been a problem in gymnastics since the 1980s after the minimum age was raised from 14 to 15 to protect young athletes from serious injuries. The minimum age was raised to its current 16 in 1997. Younger gymnasts are considered to have an advantage because they are more flexible and are likely to have an easier time doing the tough skills the sport requires. They also aren't as likely to have a history of injuries or fear of failure.
This is a quote I found in this article The article also stated somewhere that an athlete can be 15 as long as they turn 16 by December 31st in the same year that the games are held.

And isn't there a 14 year old diver from Britain? Are their different age requirements and limits for different sports? Hmmmmm? Need to do some more digging.

Blessings,

Garsy



uncabeeil -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/22/2008 2:09:48 PM)

quote:

we weren't LYING about their age.
Has yet to be determined. Please don't jump to conclusions.

When I was 14 or 15 I spent as much time as I possibly could playing baseball or basketball. Literally, we were out on the courts from 9am until 11pm or later with breaks for dinner and lunch. That's way more than those gymnasts spend training, and we did it every day. Nobody was trying to stop us because we would cause severe injury. That's an insurance company covering it's butt, that's all that is. At 14 I healed a whole lot better than I do now.

Put simply, if you're good enough to be there and be competitive, you should be allowed, whether you're 14 or 84.



garsyt -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/22/2008 2:47:33 PM)

The point is is that each sport has a different governing body that sets the rules for competition. These do sometimes include age restrictions.

While younger bodies do tend to heal faster - REPEATED injuries could led to serious lifetime problems for someone too young.

Blessings,

Garsy



agapetos -> RE: What age is too young (or too old) to compete in the Olympics? (8/22/2008 10:14:40 PM)

quote:

Too young is determined by the olympic committee--under 16, I think is the rule.
I don't think so.

quote:

And isn't there a 14 year old diver from Britain?
Yep. Tom Daley is his name. I'm not convinced that he should be competing. He's in the semifinal and has been hovering around the cut-off position to go through to the final.

quote:

While younger bodies do tend to heal faster - REPEATED injuries could led to serious lifetime problems for someone too young.
That's why I'm not convinced. Having said that, I know that his coach (says) that the amount of dives he's allowed to do each day is limited to protect him. I've noticed that he also wears supports on his wrists ~ a couple of other divers do too.
quote:

As for too old...Canada had a 50 year old fencer on the team!
I think it's Germany who has a rider (equestrian) who's in his 60's.



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