mjasantos 0 #1 September 3, 2002 Hi everyone! Following the "sad news" for our sport, posted at http://www.fai.org/news_archives/fai/000127.asp#000127 about this subject, here is the transcription of my posting of today Sep 3, 2002, at 12:37 PM GMT, at the ipc-info-l@fai.org, the Parachuting IPC Info List: ------------------------------------------------------------ Hello all, I'm using this List, just to give my personal opinion on this matter. I'm doing it here, as at http://www.fai.org/general/lists.asp under "Parachuting Lists" for this one, it says: "It can also be used as a discussion forum on the subject." So here it goes my comment on this subject: The goal of having parachuting admitted as an Olympic Sport by 2008, for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad in 2008 in Beijing, was again frustrated... this, although all the attempts aiming at it and that even have introduced some structural changes, mainly in its competition regulations side, the majority of them of very low popularity for competitors all around the World (as the reduction of the number of rounds, exit altitude or, for example, of the working time in Formation Skydiving). As for any other sport, parachuting or skydiving won't get more people practising it just because it is an Olympic Sport. People deciding to practise some kind of sport don't have their decision pending from the fact that it is or it isn't an Olympic Sport. People practise a sport, because they can, they want and they like it... Even the visibility of a sport for the media will not come exclusively from the fact that a sport is an Olympic one. For all those who have been closely following this already long process, it looks like that the initiative of turning parachuting an Olympic Sport, has a lot more supporters within those leading Parachuting related organizations than among competitors and all the others practising it... this is because the idea it stands so far, is the one of making parachuting an Olympic Sport at any cost... Being extreme and radical, this may be a risky option, that might end calling parachuting to something different from what parachuting is now, derived from the so many changes that would be required in order to have parachuting fulfilling the Olympics criteria... with this result of not having Parachuting admitted in 2008 Olympics, the conclusion will have to be that some more radical changes in the sport are required, as those proposed weren't enough... where will these changes end? Why this for the parachuting? Many other sports are and have been admitted as Olympic Sports without having to change their competition rules. Look, for example, at the football: the matches still have 90 minutes, divided in two 45 minutes halves... why should 4-way Formation Skydiving change from 35" working time down to 15 or 20"? Just due to the financial argument? I don't believe this a valid one anymore... Because of the argument that people on the ground cannot see skydivers exiting the aircraft? There is already, since a while, air-to-air video, with the option of live transmission both for large screens on the ground or on TV, as it already happened with EuroSport coverage in Turkey WAG. Using other Olympic sports as reference, all of us have the notion that the biggest part of the football spectators watch the matches through television and not at the stadiums... being live, the level of excitement for those watching is quite similar, regardless the way they are watching it, or where from (all around the world, being live)... the same for golf, now admitted: you will never have 1 million people following golf players through the 18 holes golf course, but you might have that million watching through TV... why not applying the same philosophy to parachuting? The divulgation effort, more than having parachuting recognized as an Olympic Sport, has to be done at all the opportunities where that is possible, which is at the skydiving events, all around the world... usually, what makes it attractive or not for the media, is a matter and a consequence of the way on how those events are organized... most of the times without even thinking about the media... usually, when events organization consider the media, the event becomes advertised and turns on a success... on the opposite side, without having media playing their role as well, the events become just known from those participating there, without attracting any other people or visitors... My final question is: "Will it be worthy to keep insisting in the change of the parachuting/skydiving physiognomy, loved by all of those who practise it as it is, just because of the ephemeral goal of having parachuting as an Olympic Sport?" The way it looks like now, the answer should be NO! Best Regards and Blue Skies! Mário Santos ------------------------------------------------------------ Blue Skies... if possible! ----------------------------- Mario Santos Portugal Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
