Ok, so I was wondering, if I wanted to be in teh olympics could I join the team of some country that never attends and represent them in any event I choose? IE could I declare myself the Sealand or the Angoran archery team and just show up?
Countries that participate in the Olympics have an Olympic Committee, which is governed by the IOC (International Olympic Committee). To represent a country in the Olympics, you would have to meet that country’s Olympic Committee’s requirements. I believe all of the OC’s have a bare minimum requirement of at least being a citizen of that country.
No. For one, you would have to be a resident of the country you want to represent and for another, you would have to actually prove your skill in qualifying rounds.
Exactly.
That might have been the case at one point, providing you at least became a citizen/resident/whatever that country’s OC wanted, but now you have to go through qualifying rounds.
Sorry.
Not to say that there aren’t still some silly sports that you might be able to somehow bribe your way into or something, given the IOC’s apparent penchant for gifts.
The best “easy” way in seems to have descended from immigrants from the host country and play an Olympic sport that the host nation does not play. For instance, the 2004 Greek national Olympic baseball team is comprised of a bunch of Greek-American minor league and college baseball players. They became dual American-Greek citizens solely for the purpose of playing in this games this summer in Athens.
Or lack there of - q.v. Eddie ‘the Eagle’ Edwards.
IIRC, he is one of the reasons there are now qualifying requirements.
The qulaifying to get into the Olympics is also determined by the sports governing body, and the countries Olympic Comittee. I remember a guy from the 2000 Summer Games who could barely swim, yet he represented his nation in the pool.
I believe ‘Eric the Eel’ was the guys moniker. I’m no olympic athlete but I could easily have beaten this guy in the pool!
Before the Olympics they had job advertisements for lifeguards at the swimming. I suggested that this had to be the most pointless job of all time but Eric “the Eel” Moussambani proved it’s necessity.