I think the word traitor is too harsh, but this girl should be playing for her home country and not Team Russia.
Thoughts?
She wanted to play in the Olympics and did not feel the US was serious in recruiting her. She saw a better opportunity with another team and took advantage of it. Doesn’t make her a traitor.
“Traitor” isn’t too harsh, it’s ridiculous hyperbole. And according to the article, playing for the US team wasn’t an option. I’m not an expert on the Olympics, but I thought this kind of thing was pretty common - the difference is that rather than having Russian ancestry, which is usually how it works, Hammon has a Russian passport because she’s played there.
It seems like the Olympics have become anything goes…first, they started letting pros in, now they allow inter-country free agency. Given their abject corruptness, I can’t say it’s a surprise. But it’s not entirely their fault; it’s also indicative of the societal trend that it’s O.K. to be a weasel.
Does this mean that all the American professional baseball and hockey players in Canada are traitors?
She’s 31, **has never been selected for the US national team ** and is eligible to play for Russia.
What’s the problem?
The US selectors don’t want her…
I’m just not seeing anything corrupt about this. They’re not changing the rules for her - she’s eligible to play for Russia under the rules that already exist. There’s no inter-country free agency as far as I know: the rule is that once you’ve played for one country, you’re not allowed to play for another.
But they’re playing for professional teams in Canada, not for Team Canada.
I don’t see anything wrong with this. Lots of American athletes play for other teams if they can’t make the US team, in a variety of sports.
All soccer fans yawn. No big deal, it happens all the time in all sorts of sports.
Hammon has been snubbed by USA Basketball her whole career. She was an All-American at Colorado State but wasn’t drafted by the WNBA. She has consistently been one of the best players in women’s basketball but has never been given any consideration by team USA. I hope she hits the winning shot to knock the US out of the Olympics.
P.S. Didn’t I see a promo on TV this weekend about a Russian figure skater who was fast-tracked to citizenship so she could make the US Olympic team?
I’m sure that the United States has never ever employed an athlete on their track team that was born in the Caribbean.
In basketball, yes – but not in all sports. Remember Merlene Ottey competing for Slovenia in the 2004 Athens games after winning nine Olympic medals for Jamaica between 1980 and 2000?
The scope of Raygun99’s comment can be expanded – South African native Sydney Maree became a U.S. citizen in time to run for his new country in the 1988 Olympics.
In 1984, Audun Endestad (who almost certainly couldn’t have made his Norwegian homeland’s national team) won a place on the American squad after having U.S. citizenship granted (fast-tracked, IIRC).
Considering some of the mismatches I’ve seen in Olympic hoops, maybe it would be better for “competitive balance” if some kind of draft were held, allowing each of the world’s 144 best men and 144 best women (or at least the best among those interested in competing) a shot at gold. As it now stands, such qualifying nations as Angola and Iran have no shot at a medal of any kind.
Who gives a shit about competitive balance? This is about players with ties to a country playing each other. Having a draft would instantly make the Olympics worthless. Iran or Angola want a medal then they should develop better sports programs.
This isn’t like she grew up in Chicago and the Bulls didn’t want her (or whatever the WNBA team in Chicago is) so she played for Philly. This is the Olympics and an athlete represents his/her country in those games.
I think it is a great big “Fuck You” to the U.S. on her part…
And she apparently thinks the US gave her a big “fuck you” by not inviting her to the national team. If you think things are aligned against you with someone holding a grudge and keeping you off the national team are you required to take it meekly and just accept that you’ll never get to the Olympics? She decided she wanted to go and made it happen.
And it’s certainly not like the US (and most other countries) haven’t done the exact same thing.
It’s actually exactly like that, and almost nothing like what jtgain said. She obviously would have played for the U.S. team and after getting passed over, took advantage of another option.
This thread has got to be some sort of whoosh.
For instance here’s a list of about 50 “good traitors” who’ve done the same thing the OP accuses Hammon of doing:
Of course, I placed good in quotes, as they switched their alliances to the good ol’ US of A.
Mind you, this obviously happens with literally hundreds of athletes (if not thousands) in any number of nationality switches…
Hell, the OP’s linked article itself is self-explanatory.
As well it should be. Based on the ESPN story I saw this weekend, the American coach has conducted herself like a total ass throughout the entire process. This may be the first time I root against the US in a particular olympic sport.
Firstly you can qualify to represent a country at sports in many ways:
- being born there
- having parents or grandparents of that nationality
- moving there
- changing citizenship
Secondly you miss the point. This athlete has two Olympic choices:
- represent Russia
- not go
She was the runner up in the Most Valuable Player voting in the WNBA last year (the best league in the world for women). The winner was an Aussie, so Becky was considered the best American player in the league. The coach/USA Basketball invited 23 players to the Olympic tryouts. She wasn’t one of them. F this coach.