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If the Olympic Games ever served a true altruistic purpose, they have long since outlived it. Yeah, the pursuit of athletic excellence, sportsmanship and international goodwill is plenty noble. But the modern Olympics are at best a vehicle for agitprop; at worst, a scandal magnet.

— John Ridley

Sentiment: NEGATIVE

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✓Similar Perspectives

The Olympic Games are highly commercialised. They purport to follow the traditions of an ancient athletics competition, but today it is the commercial aspect that is most apparent. I have seen how, through sport, cities and corporations compete against each other for financial gain.

— Ai Weiwei

I've always seen the Olympics as a place where you could act out your differences on the athletic field with a sense of sportsmanship and fairness and mutual respect.

— Andrew Young

The Olympics have their own unique atmosphere and energy. People might say it's just the same as any other competition, but don't kid yourself. There's a hunger for victory.

— Ilya Ilyin

For athletes, the Olympics are the ultimate test of their worth.

— Mary Lou Retton

The incentive of a medal at the biggest sporting arena in the world is what drives me. Before I hang my gloves, I want to win the Olympic medal, and my performance at London will decide my future in the sport.

— Mary Kom

No one pretends anymore that the Olympics are just about sports. It's routine to talk about what effect holding the Games in this or that capital will have on the host country's international reputation, how a nation's prestige can be raised by its medal count.

— George Packer

Olympians are the product of the Movement, and to get them to the stadiums, pools and playing fields, it takes the actions of legions of people who might not be Olympians.

— Bill Toomey

✗Opposing Perspectives

Sport allows us to engage in dialogue and to build bridges, and it may even have the capacity to reshape international relations. The Olympic Games embody perfectly this universal mission.

— Richard Attias

The Olympics remain the most compelling search for excellence that exists in sport, and maybe in life itself.

— Dawn Fraser

The Olympics are a wonderful metaphor for world cooperation, the kind of international competition that's wholesome and healthy, an interplay between countries that represents the best in all of us.

— John Williams