# What Olympic sports have more prestigious tournaments? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [May 21, 2013, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-olympic-sports-have-more-prestigious-tournaments/658952 "2013-05-21T18:42:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![sisu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@sisu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sisu)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-olympic-sports-have-more-prestigious-tournaments/658952/21 "2013-05-31T03:14:05Z")
> [@appleciders](#): > > Yeah, Marathon is a funny one. To one way of thinking, the Boston Marathon is the most prestigious. But it’s not even a world record course-- because it’s downhill, you can’t set a recognized world record on it. Yeah not to me, the Olympic Marathon is the marathon to win. Aussies have won a few medals and competed in all the big ones but it is the Olympics that are more prestigious to the fans, not sure of the runners’ view though. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-olympic-sports-have-more-prestigious-tournaments/658952/22 "2013-05-31T03:49:40Z")
> [@sisu](#): > > not sure of the runners’ view though. The Olympic marathon is a big deal, but races like the NYC, Chicago, Berlin, Boston seem to hold more prestige. The real goal however is the world record; individual races don’t seem to compare to the record. ---
**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-olympic-sports-have-more-prestigious-tournaments/658952/23 "2013-05-31T21:38:09Z")
Some Hokey questions. How big are the European hockey leagues? Is there a pan European Hockey championship that over shadows the Olympics? Do Hockey fans in Europe care that much about the Stanley cup? ---
**Author:** ![RobDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f07891/32.png) [@RobDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RobDog)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-olympic-sports-have-more-prestigious-tournaments/658952/24 "2013-05-31T21:47:20Z")
Another question for anyone into all things horsey; would something like the Badminton Horse Trials be considered more prestigious than the Olympic equestrian events? ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2013, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-olympic-sports-have-more-prestigious-tournaments/658952/25 "2013-06-01T02:56:28Z")
> [@RobDog](#): > > Another question for anyone into all things horsey; would something like the Badminton Horse Trials be considered more prestigious than the Olympic equestrian events? Wait, they have horses that play badminton? Why have I not heard of this? That has to be, hands down, the coolest sport EVER. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2013, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-olympic-sports-have-more-prestigious-tournaments/658952/26 "2013-06-01T17:14:29Z")
> [@gazpacho](#): > > Do Hockey fans in Europe care that much about the Stanley cup? There are some serious leagues in Europe, but pretty much all the best players come over to play in the NHL. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2013, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-olympic-sports-have-more-prestigious-tournaments/658952/27 "2013-06-01T17:43:53Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > I’d argue Olympic hockey is just a tad more prestigious than the Stanley Cup. You’d probably lose that argument. I’d say it’s a hell of a lot harder to win the Cup than it is a gold medal. Plus the Cup is older the Olympics, I believe. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2013, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-olympic-sports-have-more-prestigious-tournaments/658952/28 "2013-06-01T17:47:14Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > You’d probably lose that argument. I’d say it’s a hell of a lot harder to win the Cup than it is a gold medal. Plus the Cup is older the Olympics, I believe. I don’t think the ancient Greeks played ice hockey. 😃 ETA: Stanley Cup-1893, First modern Olympics-1896 ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2013, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-olympic-sports-have-more-prestigious-tournaments/658952/29 "2013-06-01T18:28:32Z")
> [@runner pat](#): > > I don’t think the ancient Greeks played ice hockey. 😃 > > ETA: Stanley Cup-1893, First modern Olympics-1896 Well, _duh_. 😉 See, I was right! And you can’t drink champagne out of an olympic medal. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-olympic-sports-have-more-prestigious-tournaments/658952.md?page=1)