A difference of perspective: How Europeans value Olympic medals

[Inkling]

Can you imagine the US or Canada celebrating like this and posing for a team photo for a bronze as if they just won the Stanley Cup?
I can't.

It's just a different mentality.

It's only different because Canada is always considered a contender (if not favourite) for Gold in hockey so winning bronze would be considered underachieving.

If the Canadian Soccer team ever played and won the 3rd place game in the World Cup (like that will ever happen, but just imagine...), you would see celebrations like they'd just won the Stanley Cup. Actually come to think of it, the women's soccer team did pretty much exactly that in the last Olympics.

You see plenty of Canadians celebrating bronzes in the Winter Olympics. There's nothing inherently different about "Canadians' mentality" it's just that the bar is set higher in hockey.

 

[Canuck21t]

I wouldn't care for Bronze as a Canadian. I want Gold in hockey.

The Bronze medal is equivalent to being Eastern or Western Conference Champions and losing the SC.

I am glad we got to the final but I don't really care about the Wales trophy.

As a hockey medal, no I wouldn't care much, but this is the Olympics and any medal is good for the whole Canadian Olympic team, not just for the hockey team. So let's not be selfish and just think about oneself and think about the TEAM.

Europeans aren't always happy with any medal. Remember the 2010 World Championships where the Russian hockey team had almost its full Olympic roster and lost in the final and as soon as they received their silver medal on their neck, they immediately took it off? Well with such attitude, I don't think they'd be happy for a bronze medal.

 

[Drij]

ANY Olympic medal is priceless.

nah you can by them on pawn stars

 

[Ohashi_Jouzu*]

Why did you Americans watch the bronze game if you didn't give a damn about bronze?

I don't know if this is a foreign concept, but for the most part, people over here have no problem supporting losing hockey teams, no matter what game it is. It's a passion for the sport first and foremost, and the heroes playing it second. Maybe that's the cultural disconnect.

 

[Mr Kanadensisk]

All I can say is that the bronze medal game means absolutely nothing to me. I actually think it is kind of cruel to make two teams who were just eliminated from winning the championship come back to play a game to decide 3rd place. There are other Olymp0ic sports, such as boxing, who award the bronze without making the SF losers fight for it and I don't see why hockey couldn't do the same. Also I know that winning 1st place is significant and so is the runner up, but making a big deal out of 3rd but not 4th just seems kind of arbitrary to me.

 

[Mr Kanadensisk]

The habit of North American hockey fans downplaying Olympic medals is in my opinion delusional from global perspective.
I mean practically anyone in the world will recognize value of Olympic medal of any color, while outside of NA and maybe some regions of Europe, Stanley Cup is obscure curiosity with no intrinsic value.
Consider this next time when discussing value of Olympic medals.

You have to realize that no one in Canada would be proud to show off a bronze medal from a best on best hockey tournament. It would just be seen as a reminder that you lost so bad you didn't even make it to the finals.

 

[TheFeistyFinn]

cultural differences. EU players play with pride & heart till' the end of the tournament. they also play for the fans who deserve something to cheer about. giving up is just *****-slap on fans faces and might aswell throw the jersey to trashbin. if any of the Finnish players would give up in bronze match i'd never want to see them in Finnish jersey again.

 

[Mr Kanadensisk]

cultural differences. EU players play with pride & heart till' the end of the tournament. they also play for the fans who deserve something to cheer about. giving up is just *****-slap on fans faces and might aswell throw the jersey to trashbin. if any of the Finnish players would give up in bronze match i'd never want to see them in Finnish jersey again.

Yup, the difference being that the fans here don't really care about the bronze and they do not feel offended if their team doesn't have the best game at that point. I can see why it is important to the Finns though.

 

[NicoSB]

Don't fool yourself. As a player you're never stepping on the ice willing to lose. Whether it's a bronze or a a gold medal game. If you win you'll be happy if you don't (in most cases) you'll be devastated.

 

[Gh24]

It was so cool to see the Finns value the chance to win an Olympic medal today.

Canada, the U.S., and even Russia would not care in the same way as the Finns or Sweden about the Bronze...

Is it the Finns' perceived underdog status, or is it a cultural difference that makes European teams more likely to embrace the prospect of winning a silver or bronze? (Whereas in North America we have the Nascar Ricky Bobby attitude that "If you're not first you're last.")

For Canada, not winning with a roster like that would be a huge disappointment, an embarrasment, so gold medal is the only valuable thing. Everything else is a failure.

For Finland, winning bronze medal with a roster like that, is a great accomplishment. Something the whole team worked hard for and did it together, cuz that's what it takes with the lack of individual talent compared to USA, Canada, Sweden or Russia.

Teemu Selänne said that no one really believed in them prior to this tournament, but to make it so far and win a broze medal, that was unbelievable.

 

[Matte99]

Don't fool yourself. As a player you're never stepping on the ice willing to lose. Whether it's a bronze or a a gold medal game. If you win you'll be happy if you don't (in most cases) you'll be devastated.

This! You wont succeed as an athlete if you dont hate to lose.

 

[Mr Kanadensisk]

This! You wont succeed as an athlete if you dont hate to lose.

I guess the point is that if you are playing for bronze you have already lost.

 

[NicoSB]

I guess the point is that if you are playing for bronze you have already lost.

A world class athlete like all the US' players should nevertheless be willing to win ANY game, nevermind what's happened before and what will come after. Otherwise you don't deserve holding your country's flag up.

 

[DrunkPerrinFan]

"We didn't care" is just sore losers spewing ******** to cushion the blow. The players cared untill they were behind by two goals in 11 seconds. Of course losing the semi finals sucks, but so does losing any other game, especially the last one in the tournament.

 

[Jack Straw]

Depends on the sport. If the US men's basketball team wins bronze, they're probably embarrassed. If the US men's soccer team wins bronze, they're probably ecstatic.

 

[SenzZen]

Who's kidding who?

If Canada gets bumped in the semis I expect them to play their ***** off for the bronze.

3> 4 FFS

 

[Ohashi_Jouzu*]

Who's kidding who?

If Canada gets bumped in the semis I expect them to play their ***** off for the bronze.

3> 4 FFS

Players aren't robots, and simulators fail at accounting for emotional/physical letdown, motivation/goals, and focus. There are 4 teams that actually face a lot of pressure to win the top spot (Canada/US/Sweden/Russia), and the rest are pretty much content to sneak a spot from whichever of them suffers the biggest letdown(s) of a short tournament - Finland probably being the best at channeling sisu instead of getting mired in semi-final disappointment.

 

[Danish Pastry]

In the end it really comes down to how you see it. Do you see it as winning Bronze or do you see it as getting third place. Now I think it was a pathetic display USA put on in the bronze medal game *see all of my post right after the game to see what i have said about it as an excuse* and i of course don't speak for other fans or Americans in general or the players but I see it as getting third myself not winning bronze.

 

[Jussi]

I guess the point is that if you are playing for bronze you have already lost.

The point is if you put on the national team jersey and mail it in, you have no right to ever wear that jersey again.

 

[PoorLeadership]

The American athletes brought home 7 silver and 12 bronze medals. Funny how they still managed to care until the end even if the winner was run away.

 

[WarriorofTime]

The American athletes brought home 7 silver and 12 bronze medals. Funny how they still managed to care until the end even if the winner was run away.

Hockey players are not skiers or figure skaters. For those athletes, the Olympics are THE moment of their careers. For them, a bronze medal is meaningful.

For American NHL players, the main concern is the Stanley Cup. Winning a GOLD medal is of importance to them. But once the dream of the Gold is done, the bronze just isn't important. Their tournament ended when they lost to Canada.

Finland is a small country and many of their players grew up dreaming of an Olympic Medal as opposed to a Stanley Cup. For them, playing for a Medal is a much bigger deal.

No excuses, Finland deserved to win. Just saying...

 

[PoorLeadership]

If you have a chance to compete for an Olympic medal for your country, but instead you go all "we didn't care anyway" and get obliterated 5-0, you should get your head checked and your passport revoked.

 

[Cawz]

Hockey players are not skiers or figure skaters. For those athletes, the Olympics are THE moment of their careers. For them, a bronze medal is meaningful.

For American NHL players, the main concern is the Stanley Cup. Winning a GOLD medal is of importance to them. But once the dream of the Gold is done, the bronze just isn't important. Their tournament ended when they lost to Canada.

Finland is a small country and many of their players grew up dreaming of an Olympic Medal as opposed to a Stanley Cup. For them, playing for a Medal is a much bigger deal.

No excuses, Finland deserved to win. Just saying...

Yup. Anyone who doesnt understand this, wont understand it.

 

[roto]

Yup. Anyone who doesnt understand this, wont understand it.

This works also in other direction. Many North Americans are unable to understand that NHL is just one league to Europeans. I don't remember any young Finnish player going to NHL saying "I dream of SC". They say instead "I want to play in NHL".

They don't dream about SC, but they want to get in a NHL team, get a big role and play well. SC is just a team prize that is difficult to get, because there are 30 teams and young players must play where they're drafted to. Older guys with longer careers start to talk about winning the SC if they haven't already won it.

 

[Tripod]

It's only different because Canada is always considered a contender (if not favourite) for Gold in hockey so winning bronze would be considered underachieving.

If the Canadian Soccer team ever played and won the 3rd place game in the World Cup (like that will ever happen, but just imagine...), you would see celebrations like they'd just won the Stanley Cup. Actually come to think of it, the women's soccer team did pretty much exactly that in the last Olympics.

You see plenty of Canadians celebrating bronzes in the Winter Olympics. There's nothing inherently different about "Canadians' mentality" it's just that the bar is set higher in hockey.

This needs to re-read over and over again.

It in no way diminished what Finland did. But FOR CANADA, a HOCKEY BRONZE is a disappointment. In Soccer or Basketball a Bronze for Canada is LIKE WINNING GOLD.

It is not about Canadians being cocky, it is about expectations. Kids grow up HEARING that in hockey, it is gold or nothing else matters. It is in our culture. It doesn't make it right, but it just is.

And again, that attitude does not take away what Finland did to DESERVE the Bronze.

And just look how Can has done. Won 3 of the last 4 Olympics. The other time..7th! Once Gold was out of reach...who cares.

Hell..look at the Jr's. We have not won in 5 years and it is a major disappointment. And really, at this point, they SHOULD be happy just to medal as they are no longer the top team there. But Gold is still expected. But it is quite noticable that after 5 straight gold, we have followed up up with 2 Silver, then a Bronze, now 2 straight 4th place finishes.