Olympic medals and Per Capita GDP
Per capita GDP tells us our athletes did quite well.
The Olympics are a place to demonstrate personal excellence. However, per capita GDP plays a vital role in achieving that excellence.
Consider the table below, which compares the total Olympic medal tally and per capita GDP in PPP terms.
This table includes the top 30 countries based on their medal tally for the 2024 Olympics, sorted in descending order, along with their respective per capita income in USD. The United States leads with 126 medals, followed by China with 91.
Alongside the Total Medal Tally, you will find the Per Capita GDP in PPP terms expressed in US Dollars.
Except for Kenya and Uzbekistan, no country has a per capita GDP below 15000. Almost all countries above India have more per capita GDP than India.
Ninety countries won at least one medal in the Paris Olympics 2024. Only twelve have a lower per capita GDP than India. In other words, only 12 are poorer than India on a per capita basis.
Why is per capita GDP important?
A higher per capita GDP allows the economy to sustain supporting infrastructure.
Such countries have easier access to playgrounds, badminton, tennis and squash courts, Olympic-level turf laid grounds, availability of ice rinks and ski slopes, etc.
It allows support staff to develop expertise on a broader set of athletes. Thus, your physiotherapists are more experienced in sports-related issues. You also get access to proper rehab and training facilities.
It allows athletes multiple opportunities to compete and test their training and performance regimen under different conditions. It sustains athletes aged 5 and above in various junior and senior leagues. This allows for identifying the best medal prospects and their training.
Retired athletes have well-paying opportunities, thereby encouraging young performers to take up sports.
Is the whole outcry over less medals overblown?
Not at all. In fact, as a country moves up the per capita GDP ladder, this is precisely what happens.
Athletes start believing they can do it with proper training and practice.
People think our athletes can beat the best and demand more resources to be allocated to athletic performance.
General awareness about athletes and competitions within the population increases.
These are all symptoms of growing economic might demanding our athletes take their rightful place in the Olympic Games. This is part of the journey.
What does this mean?
As India goes from $9000 per capita PPP GDP to $20,000 GDP, the proliferation of sports will accelerate. In the coming years, we will be able to identify and support athletes much more. As a corollary, we will get more medals.
We should not be harsh and unkind in our assessment of our own performance. Some people want to unnecessarily deflate any trace of pride in what we have achieved in any field. It is time to shun these whiners.
It is time to seek out winners. That is the spirit of the Olympics.
Notes:
https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024/medals
World Bank
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