Division Of Labour At The Olympics

"Kenyans win every race. Did you ever see a marathon? A Kenyan wins every time. If you got on a plane for Vegas right now, and I got on a Kenyan, I'd beat you."

- Chris Rock, October 2008

Greetings. As the games of the thirty-second Olympiad begin this weekend in Tokyo, Japan, the pandemic and its after-effects have overshadowed the event. Uganda, fielding a team for the 16th time (the most of any East African nation), has been thrust in the limelight due to the disappearance of weightlifter Julius Sekitoleko. It's easy for one to sympathise with the young lad's plight; he's from a poor background with the financial burden of his family weighing on his shoulders. He took the free transportation the government accorded him to the second largest economy in the world and 'sought greener pastures' whilst there. 

The Olympics has on occasion served as a connotation for income disparities; there's a correlation between the largest economies by GDP and the all-time Olympic medal overhaul. At the 2016 edition, 8 of the top 10 countries also boasted of the highest GDP. The United States has led the medals table at seventeen of the twenty-eight Olympic Games' editions held. Large economic resources do guarantee a bigger sports budget and with that comes better facilitation and superior facilities for athletes. With that correlation in mind, is it possible to attain success with less economic resources and can we predict which African country could collect the most medals at the Tokyo Olympics?

Len Taunyane and Jan Mashiani at the 1904 Olympics

The modern Olympics date back to 1896, and at the third edition eight years later South Africa fielded a team of eight athletes. Two Setswana – Len Taunyane and Jan Mashiani – were part of this team. On 30th August 1904, the duo became the first black Africans to compete at the Olympics, finishing 9th and 12th respectively; Taunyane could have finished higher had he not been veered off course by a dog that pursued him midway the race. 

More than a century after Taunyane and Mashiani's milestone, each African nation has sent representatives to the Olympics, with varying success. 27 of the 54 African countries are yet to win a medal at the quadrennial showpiece. As with the overall table of Olympic medals, the African countries with the highest medal tally fall in the ten richest economies on the continent. Kenya has secured 103 medals (including 31 gold medals) from the 14 Olympics editions in which they have fielded athletes, making them the most successful African country at the games. The rest of the top 10 includes South Africa, Ethiopia, Egypt, Nigeria, Algeria, Tunisia, Zimbabwe, Uganda and Cameroon; of which only Zimbabwe ranks outside the fifteen largest economies on the continent.

Meagre resources in any competition call for strategy. The easiest course of action is specialisation; focusing one's resources on a singular activity and subsequently attaining superior technique at said activity. Kenya, despite being wealthy on its home continent, is surpassed on the global stage when it comes to economic wealth. Austria, with a population of less than 9 million, dwarfs the Kenyan economy; on income per capita Kenya is 21 times smaller! The East Africans have more medals despite participating in 13 fewer editions than the Austrians. Kenyan medals however have come from only two categories (Athletics and Boxing), whereas the Austrians have taken medals from 16 different categories. 

Country	2016 Medals	All Time Medals	All Time Editions	Medal/Edition
Nigeria	1	25	16	1.5625
Egypt	3	32	22	1.454545
South Africa	10	86	19	4.526316
Algeria	2	17	13	1.307692
Morocco	1	23	14	1.642857
Ethiopia	8	54	13	4.153846
Kenya	13	103	14	7.357143
Ghana	0	4	14	0.285714
Tanzania	0	2	13	0.153846
Angola	0	0	9	0
Uganda	0	7	15	0.466667

The rational economic man instinct comes into play here; resources should be focused on the activities that bring in the most medals. Kenya has only managed medals in Athletics dating back to 1992; their last boxing medal came in 1988. It is only fair that investment in sports concentrates on athletics. 

Talent and differences in natural landscape (altitude factor) notwithstanding, economic resources have a role to play in sporting achievement. Nevertheless, the less endowed nations can choose to focus on specific sporting disciplines. Kenya no doubt will lead the African medal haul; they've been averaging seven medals per Olympic edition. If a one Cheptegei secures double gold in Tokyo, Uganda with two golds could finish ahead of some better endowed European nations. The lack of sports specialisation and funding in Uganda however will be a subject for another day.

Ceteris. Paribus.

References

Kasujja, A, (19th July, 2021) Will Africa triumph at the Tokyo Olympics? [BBC Africa Daily Podcast]. 19th July 2021.

Kigongo, I.D., (01st February, 2021). "Sports needs a lot from its legislators". The Daily Monitor.

O’Toole, S., (07th July, 2016). "Story of South Africa's first black Olympians keeps us guessing". Mail & Guardian Online

A Re-Education In Colonialism

Greetings. The European Football Championships came to an end on Sunday night, with Italy emerging victorious over the English team. I rooted for Italy not out of a sense of loyalty to them over the years. Schadenfreude has guided my choice of rooting for England's opposition; there's a certain pleasure I derive from the comments section of a BBC HYS (Have Your Say) whenever they are on the wrong end of a sports result. This carries on into rugby (I root against the All Blacks and Springboks) and cricket (England, again). In a way, I also admire the way they've utilised their infrastructure to build a dominant position, because I believe you can't learn from a weak opponent.

However, there were several reasons other corners were up in arms against the English: silencing them, the anti-Brexit brigade and the colonial past of the British empire. It is the latter that I shall address, as irony was raised to a whole new level with the celebration of the Italian team's victory as a "defeat of colonialism". 

"500 Years of European Colonialism", Source: Vox

England is a constituent nation in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The other constituents are Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Before expanding their empire beyond the seas, the first conquests were made within their own land mass. Between 1542 and 1801 the four nations were united by various means to form the United Kingdom. 

At its height, the British Empire covered a quarter of the World's land mass – with the modern state of Uganda engulfed in that area as a protectorate. The difference between a protectorate and a colony lies in the fact that there was less land grabbing in the former than in the later, but the humiliation of the pre-existing systems was a constant. 

The English provided the bulk of the manpower that governed the Empire. Of the twelve colonial Governors of Uganda, Sir Walter Coutts – a Scot – was the sole non-Englishman. It is for this reason that any negative memory from colonialism levelled at the British Empire is usually focused at the English more than their counterparts in the British Empire building exercise.

However, Britain wasn't without competition in this pursuit of imperialism. Over 20,000 African societies were reorganised into less than fifty states under the heel of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Belgium. The South American continent was under the domain of Spain and Portugal. The Dutch and the British even had some domains in the Caribbean and Asia. 

The colonialists' sins are well documented and have been the impetus behind recent drives to reform the education system, rename significant landmarks as well as compensation for past ills done to the African natives. In this matter the British, the Italians, the Germans, Portuguese, Spaniards, French, Dutch and Belgians alike are all guilty. The semi-final line up of Euro 2020 was a reading of past colonial powers. If you're thinking Denmark was innocent in all this you should read up on Erik Gobel's 2006 book, Danish Slave Trade and its Abolition. The Danes occupied present-day Accra in 1658, and only sold it to the British in 1850.

The wider world remembers Britain's participation in colonialism since they were the most successful nation at it. The 1997 handover of the island of Hong Kong to Chinese authorities marked the end of British colonial hegemony after 500 years. On the other hand, the role of Italy and Germany is forgotten owing to the two World Wars. At the beginning of the first World War Germany had four colonies in Africa as well as a series of islands in the Pacific. When the Germans were defeated in the War, their colonies were partitioned among the British and the French and with the passing of time, Tanganyika came to remember more the British occupation than the German occupation.

The German and Italian participation in World War II masked their colonial record further. For one the second world war was the deadliest in history, with the casualty count ranging between 50-80 million. Secondly, the Axis powers (Germany, Italy and Japan) were motivated by racial purification, seeking to eliminate other races they considered inferior to their own. Imperial backlash has been directed towards the British and French, while the Italians and Germans seem to have swapped their colonial sins for their holocaust sins. The Belgian sins in the Congo are even much more suppressed owing to their limited significance in international relations. Had they been playing the final, they could have drummed up more support from Uganda, yet occupants in the land to the West of Uganda's borders still bear scars of King Leopold's atrocities.

It's good we point out the ills of colonialism. However, we should be consistent in our denouncement. England was not the only culprit in this. Every winning nation of the preceding Euro and World Cup dating back to 2004 played a part in colonialism, both the benefits and the demerits that came with it. 

Ceteris. Paribus.

Further Reading

Fanon, F. (2008). Black Skin, White Masks. Grove Press.

Ferguson, N. (2012). Empire: How Britain Made the Modern World. Penguin UK.

Giordani, P (1916). The German Colonial Empire–Its Beginning and Ending, translated by Mrs. Gustavus W. Hamilton, G. Bell and Sons, London.

Gøbel, E. (2016). The Danish Slave Trade And Its Abolition. Brill.

Kohn, M., & Reddy, K. (2006). "Colonialism". In Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

Weisbord, R. G. (2003). The King, the Cardinal and the Pope: Leopold II's Genocide in the Congo and the Vatican. Journal of Genocide Research, 5(1), 35-45.

The Triumph Of Europe

"Civilisations are complex things. For centuries they can flourish in a sweet spot of power and prosperity. But then, often quite suddenly, they can tip over the edge into chaos."

Niall Ferguson, 2012

Greetings. The dry (some of you call it summer) season of 2021 is set to serve up a platter of sports festivities. The postponed European Football Championships, the 2021 Copa America, the Tokyo Olympics, as well as the annual events from the tennis, golf, formula 1 and MotoGP calendars that occur during this period. 

UEFA's quadrennial showpiece has hogged the majority of the media attention. By contrast, little attention has been paid to the on-going Copa America, the holy grail of South American football taking place in Brazil. the final games for both events take place on Sunday, featuring nations that have won the World Cup a combined 12 times! Arguably one of the best football payers of all time will feature in the Copa America, but media attention will mainly focus on Wembley for the European showpiece. This follows the precedent set by European club football, which has dwarfed the club tournaments from other corners of the world. Does this period herald the triumph of European football over the rest (and in particular the South Americans)? And where does this leave Africa?

Early Years

Prior to 1930, the football competition at the Olympics was the sport's biggest prize. Despite the Europeans winning four of the first five tournaments, the South Americans dominated the last two events before the inaugural World Cup; with Uruguay winning back-to-back gold in 1924 and 1928, including an all-South American final in the latter.

In 1928, FIFA decided to host an international football tournament. Given that Europe was severely hit by the Great Depression, the organisation sought to host the tournament on another continent. Uruguay, which had won the Olympic gold in football twice and was planning to celebrate its independence centennial, was chosen as the maiden host. Travelling to Uruguay at the time was only possible by sea, and several European clubs were unwilling to release their players for the two-month sojourn. Only four European countries committed to partake in the tournament. In a repeat of the Olympic final from two years earlier, Uruguay triumphed over Argentina.

International travel again limited the participation of South American teams at the 1934 tournament, held in Italy. With the reigning champions boycotting the tournament, Argentina, Brazil and Egypt – Africa's first ever representative – were the only non-European participants in the 16-team event. Italy emerged victorious, and successfully defended their title four years later in France.

The political and economic turmoil caused by the second World War meant the tournament took a hiatus during the 1940s, only returning in 1950 hosted by Brazil and won by Uruguay, and four years later West Germany won their first title in Switzerland. At this point European teams had won 3 out of 3 tournaments held on European soil, and the Uruguayans had won both tournaments held on South American soil. At the 1958 showpiece hosted in Sweden, Brazil became the first non-European team to win the tournament on European soil, spurred on by a young Pele. In the four tournaments held between 1958 and 1970, Brazil won three across three different continents (Sweden '58, Chile '62 and Mexico '70), their sole blemish being the 1966 event won by the English on home soil. The South American nations had entrenched their brand of football as the finest in the World, even dominating their European counterparts in the annual Intercontinental Cup. The tournament played between the club football champions of Europe and South America saw the clubs from the latter win 6 of the first 10 editions.

At the 2002 World Cup, hosted in Japan and South Korea, Brazil emerged victorious on Asian soil, claiming their fifth tournament win and the fourth different continent on which they had won football's greatest showpiece. The tally of tournament victories stood at 9-8, advantage to the South American nations over their European rivals. Unbeknownst to the South Americans, this would be the last time a team from Europe would fail to lift the Jules Rimet trophy.

The Rise of Europe

Being on the backfoot is an all too familiar scenario for European cultures. Proponents of Afrocentrism and Oriental Philosophy always point out the superiority of their ancient cultures over the European systems. What we forget to explore is Europe's persistence in overcoming its disadvantageous position and surpassing its superior rivals. Fortunately, Niall Ferguson, the self-proclaimed "international man of history" chronicles the rise of Western Civilisation – with Europe at the centre – towards global dominance, in his 2006 book, Civilisation.

Ferguson does acknowledge that Europe 500 years ago was a "miserable backwater … plagued by bad sanitation and seemingly incessant war." By comparison, the Ottoman Empire and the Chinese kingdom were far better. He posits that Europe advanced on the back of six factors, key among these being competition. The European nation states were trapped in constant war with one another as well as internal civil strife. This perennial state of conflict provide benefits in the form of innovation in military technology, and the fact that rival states grew progressively better at raising revenue for their campaigns. 

To apply this to the state of national team football, there are ten countries in South America compared to over fifty in Europe. The Copa America is usually a 12-team tournament, meaning there is no need for a qualifying session as the confederation is always tasked with inviting two foreign teams to partake in the tournament. By comparison, the European competition in it's 60-year history, accepted only 8 teams in the finals tournament for 9 of the 16 editions it has been running for. The limited number of slots has fostered competition amongst the nations. The Europeans have had to be innovative in raising revenue for their football systems, investing in youth academies, revolutionising coaching and investing in stadium infrastructure. Absence of competition has stifled football innovation in South America, and the lack of revenue has meant their best players have had to ply their trade in Europe. 

In economic terms, four of the seven largest economies in the world (G7) are located in Europe, and three of these four have gone on to lift the World Cup on three of the last four tournaments. The four World Cups held after the 2002 showpiece have all been won by European countries, having been hosted in Europe on two occasions (2006 and 2018), South America (2014) and Africa (2010). This run has included a first-time winner (Spain in 2010), three all-European finals (2006, 2010 and 2018) and two occasions where all four semi-finalists were European sides (2006 and 2018). In the same period, the South Americans have only managed one runner's up spot (2014) and on two occasions the continent had no representative at the semi-final stage of the competition (2006 and 2018).

Whither Africa?

Of the 21 editions held for the World Cup, Africa has had at least a representative on 14 occasions, and for the 6 tournaments held from 1998 onwards the continent was guaranteed 5 qualifying spots (in 2010 South Africa took the sixth slot as hosts). The 5 slots available are competed for by the 53 countries. 

In contrast with the benefits of competition in Europe, the African nations have never progressed beyond the Quarterfinal stage. At every World Cup between 1986 and 2014, an African nation made the second round, with three of those occasions producing a quarterfinal representative. However, in 2018 there was no African nation in the knockout stage, despite fielding Senegal (quarterfinalists in 2002), Nigeria (who've made the knockouts on 3 previous occasions), Morocco (who made the knockouts in 1986), Tunisia and Egypt (seven-time winners of the African Cup).

In terms of resources and stadium infrastructure, Africa lags behind the European and South American counterparts. However, in terms of sports administration, the African and Latin American teams are in the same boat. In the political arena, the two continents have been marred by leaders who stay-in-power for long while overseeing patronage and corruption, and often power changes by military means if not dynastic succession. The football governing bodies on the two continents are not that different. Just last month the football governing body in Uganda okayed the incumbent president to contest for a third term in office, despite being involved in the 2014 World Cup ticket scandal. The 2015 FBI investigation snared 13 officials from South American football bodies, more than any other continent. Other scandals involving football administrators on both continents have involved sexual misconduct and player trafficking!

Football governors in the two continents are motivated by personal interests at the expense of the players' welfare. There is limited facilitation available to these players compared to their European counterparts, and the huge salaries and endorsement deals accrued playing in Europe raises the opportunity cost of opting for national duty.

Irrespective of how skilled the players are in Africa and South America, as long as their incomes are meagre and their sports governance lags behind, Europe will always emerge victorious. It seems the European football civilisation will not "tip over the edge into chaos", in contrast to Ferguson's opening quote. 

The Euro has proven to be a good indicator of which nation will win the next World Cup; the four most recent World Cup winners had made it to the semi-final stage of the most recent Euro. Perhaps England, with the sport's richest football league, richest national federation, and being part of the fourth largest economy in the world (UK), can continue dreaming after making this year's Euro final.

Ceteris. Paribus.

Further Reading

Federation of International Football Associations, 2010. "FIFA World Cup Origin", FIFA.

Ferguson, N. (2012). Civilization: The West and the Rest. Penguin. Chapter 1: Competition

Kigongo, I.D., (June 2021). "FUFA EC declares Magogo unopposed," The Daily Monitor.

McDougall, D., (January 2008). "The scandal of Africa's trafficked players," The Guardian.

Reuters, (June 2019). "FIFA to take over the running of African football," Reuters.

Sargeant, P., (June 2015). "Football corruption: Who bought the Copa America?" BBC.

Schmidt, S. (November 2017). "Former Argentine official throws himself under train hours after being accused in FIFA soccer scandal," The Washington Post.

Varcoe, Fred (19 May 2002). "Taming the 'bulldog'". The Japan Times Online.

Vickery, T. (2008). "European game puts South America in shade." BBC

Voice of America, (December 2015). "South America, a 'Breeding Ground' for Soccer Corruption?" VOA