Honours for Olympians

[Hibbyradge]

What a pile of pish.

These elite athletes are given around £28k a year to let them train and practice their hobby full time.

Most of them fail so why should the successful ones be honoured as well as now being able to financially capitalise on what they've achieved on the back of our money?

I'm buggered if I'm calling any of these privileged and spoilt people "Sir" or "Baroness" or whatever moniker they're given.

Raging.

[Geo_1875]

It's an absolute nonsense. Chucking money at people who are good at games so they don't have to work and can concentrate on getting better at games.

I heard a report claiming that each Olympic gold medal cost around £5 million from National Lottery funding. This was money which previously had been given to "good causes". These "good causes" have had funding slashed since London won it's Olympic games. That's another good reason to stop participating in another government money grab.

[Hibbyradge]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/olympics/...hen-we-adjust/

[snooky]

I'd rather they gave awards (and wage rises) to nurses and the like who are the real heroes/heroines in society.

I remember a few years ago a yachtswoman complaining because she couldn't get enough funding to go to Australia for the summer to train for some big event.
WTF???
These folk have their heads right up their afts.

[lord bunberry]

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What a pile of pish.

These elite athletes are given around £28k a year to let them train and practice their hobby full time.

Most of them fail so why should the successful ones be honoured as well as now being able to financially capitalise on what they've achieved on the back of our money?

I'm buggered if I'm calling any of these privileged and spoilt people "Sir" or "Baroness" or whatever moniker they're given.

Raging.

What are you raging at? Is it the honours system or the fact that Olympians are being honoured? If it's the former then I agree, the latter I'm inclined to think that they are as deserving as most of the others that have been given them.
Personally I'd do away with the whole outdated thing.

[Wembley67]

What about privileged world class footballers?

[easty]

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What about privileged world class footballers?

The National Lottery should probably fund their xmas nights out.

[Wembley67]

I agree

[PeeJay]

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It's an absolute nonsense. Chucking money at people who are good at games so they don't have to work and can concentrate on getting better at games.

I heard a report claiming that each Olympic gold medal cost around £5 million from National Lottery funding. This was money which previously had been given to "good causes". These "good causes" have had funding slashed since London won it's Olympic games. That's another good reason to stop participating in another government money grab.

You don't think having the youth of the country getting involved in different types of sports with top-class facilities is a "good cause"?

[Hibbyradge]

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What are you raging at? Is it the honours system or the fact that Olympians are being honoured? If it's the former then I agree, the latter I'm inclined to think that they are as deserving as most of the others that have been given them.
Personally I'd do away with the whole outdated thing.

I don't agree with the honours system, but given that we have it, I think it should be used to acknowledge real heroics.

These athletes aren't heroes. They've won medals against other athletes who didn't enjoy the luxury of being paid to train full time.

Frankly, it would have been a disgrace if GB hadn't done well.

[Hibbyradge]

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What about privileged world class footballers?

Are they getting knighted too?

[twiceinathens]

Any system where well paid individuals such as high ranking police officers and senior civil servants receive automatic knighthoods along with those who are rewarded for "services to politics" i.e. making large donations is ripe for at very least major reform. As for sporting awards I seem to remember mass gongs for an England cricket squad after winning the ashes - finally winning a two horse race.

[NAE NOOKIE]

Load of medieval pish kept in place by the nobs so that its easier for the proles to recognise their betters ...... the whole thing should be consigned to the dustbin of history.

[Sergio sledge]

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What a pile of pish.

These elite athletes are given around £28k a year to let them train and practice their hobby full time.

Most of them fail so why should the successful ones be honoured as well as now being able to financially capitalise on what they've achieved on the back of our money?

I'm buggered if I'm calling any of these privileged and spoilt people "Sir" or "Baroness" or whatever moniker they're given.

Raging.

I disagree with the honours system and disagree with sportspeople getting them for winning medals at the Olympics. The medal is enough in itself IMHO.

However, just because they get paid to do a sport for a job (£28k isn't all that much compared to many other jobs is it?) It seems pretty harsh calling them privileged and spoilt. The vast majority of them work ridiculously hard and make some massive sacrifices in their pursuit of a medal and should be applauded for the example they set compared to the example set by some other so called role models. I'd certainly rather my sons looked up to a Jason Kenny or Steve Redgrave than some of the footballers or "celebrities" that they see on the TV.

As you yourself say, most of them fail, which makes the achievements of the ones who do succeed all the more impressive.

[Wembley67]

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Are they getting knighted too?

Some have been aye. I'm not talking about the honours system which agreeably is pish.

[Hibbyradge]

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I disagree with the honours system and disagree with sportspeople getting them for winning medals at the Olympics. The medal is enough in itself IMHO.

However, just because they get paid to do a sport for a job (£28k isn't all that much compared to many other jobs is it?) It seems pretty harsh calling them privileged and spoilt. The vast majority of them work ridiculously hard and make some massive sacrifices in their pursuit of a medal and should be applauded for the example they set compared to the example set by some other so called role models. I'd certainly rather my sons looked up to a Jason Kenny or Steve Redgrave than some of the footballers or "celebrities" that they see on the TV.

As you yourself say, most of them fail, which makes the achievements of the ones who do succeed all the more impressive.

£28k isn't a huge salary, but it's paid by the government so folk can practice their hobbies and compared to benefits, it's enormous.

Also, they're competing against athletes who do not enjoy the luxury of the best training facilities and an above average income from their government, hence my use of the adjectives "privileged" and "spoilt".

I actually don't mind the investment in sport, but honouring them as "heroes" for achieving what they've been paid to achieve grates with me.

[Sergio sledge]

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£28k isn't a huge salary, but it's paid by the government so folk can practice their hobbies and compared to benefits, it's enormous.

Also, they're competing against athletes who do not enjoy the luxury of the best training facilities and an above average income from their government, hence my use of the adjectives "privileged" and "spoilt".

I actually don't mind the investment in sport, but honouring them as "heroes" for achieving what they've been paid to achieve grates with me.

It is pretty much the UK average income isn't it? I'm pretty sure most of them treat it like a job rather than a hobby, they are getting paid to do it. But unfair to single them out just because they happen to enjoy their job.

Plenty of computer programmers love programming and started out doing it for a hobby but now get paid to do it as a job, often on the best equipment in the best facilities. Are they spoilt? What about someone who blogged as a hobby but it's now paid to write a blog or has become a journalist, are they spoilt? Or the person who invented things in their shed as a hobby but now gets paid to do product design, are they spoilt?

I'm sure they consider it a massive privilege to be able to make a living out of sport, but I suspect that's not the sense you meant when you used the word privileged...

A large number of the athletes that team GB were competing against are professionals week who benefit from government and private funding, probably the majority of athletes from developed countries are like this. We might be throwing a lot of money at it but so are lots of other countries. It isn't as much of an unfair playing field as you are making out IMHO.

Anyway, bit of a thread hi-jack, back to the OP, I agree that they shouldn't get honours

[Hibernia&Alba]

I don't know why anyone would accept an 'honour', thus legitimising the British class system and its inherent snobbery. My respect is for those who refuse them.

[heretoday]

It's too early for Andy Murray to get a knighthood and I hope he let's them know it.

You can't have Rafa Nadal v Sir Andrew Murray. It sounds medieval!

[marinello59]

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It's too early for Andy Murray to get a knighthood and I hope he let's them know it.

You can't have Rafa Nadal v Sir Andrew Murray. It sounds medieval!

That's exactly why he should get a Knighthood. Every point he wins could be accompanied by a cry of 'Take that you scurvy knave". A few promises to pull the King of Spain's beard off would be good as well.

[ronaldo7]

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I don't know why anyone would accept an 'honour', thus legitimising the British class system and its inherent snobbery. My respect is for those who refuse them.

There are still some who are prepared to doff their cap to the toffs. The system is outdated and should be binned.

[lyonhibs]

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That's exactly why he should get a Knighthood. Every point he wins could be accompanied by a cry of 'Take that you scurvy knave". A few promises to pull the King of Spain's beard off would be good as well.

Every ace or thumping forehand would come with a knowing glance that said "I'll be round to collect the corn tax tomorrow anaw, peasant"

On the thread topic, honours are constantly handed out to those who patently don't merit them so if we acknowledge the system is flawed then Olympians are far from the least deserving people to be awarded them.

[snooky]

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Every ace or thumping forehand would come with a knowing glance that said "I'll be round to collect the corn tax tomorrow anaw, peasant"

On the thread topic, honours are constantly handed out to those who patently don't merit them so if we acknowledge the system is flawed then Olympians are far from the least deserving people to be awarded them.

I prefer seeing Honours to go to those who really deserve it like Samantha Cameron's hairdresser.

[heretoday]

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Every ace or thumping forehand would come with a knowing glance that said "I'll be round to collect the corn tax tomorrow anaw, peasant"

On the thread topic, honours are constantly handed out to those who patently don't merit them so if we acknowledge the system is flawed then Olympians are far from the least deserving people to be awarded them.

I hate when civil servants or whatever get honours for just doing their daily job. At least the Olympians have sweated a bit. But to hell with that.

You lily livered excuse for a Serbian! I'll stretch your skills as on the rack Mr so called Nolo! For I am Sir Andrew of Easter Road and points north. My mother is the Queen of all Perthshire you swarthy bad haircut! I'll pass you once and twice Sir!