How to Be an Olympian

As the Olympic Games are being held this year in Paris, I thought it would be interesting to explore how the Olympians earn their chance at gold, silver, or bronze. It turns out that, just like in the world of finance, the path to the Olympics is paved with strategic planning, diligent effort, and a fair bit of competitive spirit.

Paris 2024

Olympic Games Paris 2024 will be held from 26 July to 11 August of this year and will include Aquatics, Athletics, and Boxing. New categories like breaking (as in break-dancing, I kid you not) will grace the games, as over 10,000 athletes from over 200 countries compete in 306 medal events.

The Right Stuff?

When it comes to qualifying, each sport has a different metric by which they judge. Some are based on individual performances, others on the collective strength of national teams. Sports like shooting and taekwondo offer quotas for places earned by individual athletes, which helps prevent a small number of countries from dominating any event. However, even then, the final say on who fills those quota places lies with the athlete's respective National Olympic Committees (NOCs).

Dream Teams

In team sports, nations secure their spots through performances in World Championships, continental competitions, or global qualifiers. This rigorous selection process ensures only the highest-performing athletes represent their countries on the international stage, making each event a (hopefully) thrilling spectacle of skill and sportsmanship.

Talk about inspiring! The dedication, coordination, and grit needed to arrive at this global stage is just "awesome" in every sense.

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