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The average person could do just about nothing in gymnastics. Average people can run, swim, ride bikes, throw things, etc., but faced with a springboard and vault, or a balance beam, or a pommel horse, what would YOU do?
I think that gymnastics has to have the greatest divide between average person and Olympic champion. Some top college athletes would be getting close, though.
The biggest divide would be anything that is timed or is stamina based. You MIGHT get lucky and score a point. But there is relatively nothing to get lucky at when you go against the clock/distance.
That said - pretty much anything will have a tremendous gap between top athletes and the average joe.
The average person could do just about nothing in gymnastics. Average people can run, swim, ride bikes, throw things, etc., but faced with a springboard and vault, or a balance beam, or a pommel horse, what would YOU do?
I think that gymnastics has to have the greatest divide between average person and Olympic champion. Some top college athletes would be getting close, though.
Yeah, except it's a judged sport and that is wrought with corruption.
I know it's one of the hardest things to do but I honestly can not tell a third place performance vs a first place performance.
With swimming or other timed sports, you know who was the best that day because they got to the finish line first.
Add to that what about a college gymnast vs olympian. Not sure the divide would be that great. Average joe, of course.
Add to that what about a college gymnast vs Olympian. Not sure the divide would be that great. Average joe, of course.
The thing is, of course, that many people have been college athletes AND Olympians, often at the same time. So asking for a clear division between the two, as though they were totally different groups of humans, is a bit strange.
Of course among college athletes, some are and some aren't capable of Olympic-level competition, but still, about 75% of this year's Olympic athletes are or have competed in the college system:
Quote:
At these Olympics, 463 U.S. athletes (76%) competed at 169 schools spanning Divisions I, II and III, as well as at junior colleges and collegiate club programs. Twenty of the U.S. rosters in individual sports are made up of at least 80% of athletes who played in college and 11 teams are composed solely of them.
The thing is, of course, that many people have been college athletes AND Olympians, often at the same time. So asking for a clear division between the two, as though they were totally different groups of humans, is a bit strange.
Of course among college athletes, some are and some aren't capable of Olympic-level competition, but still, about 75% of this year's Olympic athletes are or have competed in the college system:
The question isn't if Olympians were college athletes, but rather are they current college athletes. Of course there is some crossover but take tennis for example: Novak Djokovic/Nadal/Federer vs top ranked current college tennis player - how big is the divide?
In tennis, it is immense.
Which I think answers a bit of the question. If you can be at the peak of your sport while still in college, than the divide is "smaller".
The question isn't if Olympians were college athletes, but rather are they current college athletes. Of course there is some crossover but take tennis for example: Novak Djokovic/Nadal/Federer vs top ranked current college tennis player - how big is the divide?
In tennis, it is immense.
Which I think answers a bit of the question. If you can be at the peak of your sport while still in college, than the divide is "smaller".
Yes, that reveals which sports favor very young athletes and which sports tend to have athletes who peak later in life. You could say that the sports whose top athletes are the oldest are the sports with the greatest divide between Olympians and collegians.
The average person could do just about nothing in gymnastics. Average people can run, swim, ride bikes, throw things, etc., but faced with a springboard and vault, or a balance beam, or a pommel horse, what would YOU do?
I think that gymnastics has to have the greatest divide between average person and Olympic champion. Some top college athletes would be getting close, though.
I agree that gymnastics would have the greatest divide. I have watched college gymnastics - even a college team with a former Olympian - and the difficulty of the routines just doesn't compare. When you add in the fact that they have to perform flawlessly at that exact moment, it just seems like that is the event that even an above average athlete would look bad in comparison to an Olympic athlete.
I think it is possible that there are some really fast runners out in the world who could hold their own against an Olympic runner - especially marathoners.
Team sports like soccer or basketball are difficult to compare because of the team component.
This is an interesting thread!
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