Are Olympians Allowed to be Professional Athletes?

By Jayson Panganiban July 25, 2024 11:22

Photo by AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

Amateurism has been closely associated with the Olympic Games for as long as it historically prohibited all but amateur athletes from participating. It was a central tenet by Pierre de Coubertin, the father of Olympic modernity, who thought the games had to be a sober celebration of athleticism and fair play with no commercial context.

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By the second half of the 20th century, that delineated separation between amateur and professional athletes began to erode. The amateur-only rule was slowly eased over the following decades for several reasons:

State-sponsored "Amateurs": A new era of amateurism began in communist Eastern Bloc countries with the advent of stately funded athletic programs, specifically for Olympic athletes. These were, in effect, professionals receiving full-time training and financial support from their government yet still classified as amateurs by the rules of the Olympic governing body.

The Commercialization and Sponsorship: As the Olympic Games expanded in size, level of competition, and reputation more recently due to television coverage, resisting multi-million dollar deals for sponsorship or endorsements was a different beast altogether. With professional athletes in the fold, it could help significantly increase the commercial appeal and revenue generation for an event that has already experienced blockbuster television ratings over its 18-day run.

Equity, Competition: The exclusion of professional athletes was considered an injustice to those who had committed sovereignty over their lives for ready, but it still could not be regarded as a reality offering. The push for inclusion in the context of wanting to have the best athletes in their given sports competing on an Olympic stage is how we ultimately got here.

How the IOC Moved Beyond Amateurism

The IOC began to lift its amateur requirement in the late 1980s. At the 1988 Seoul Olympics, the IOC voted to recognize all professionals as eligible for the games, pending approval of their international federations.

It was a momentous move, one that opened the door for high-profile professional athletes, such as NBA superstars on "Dream Team," to represent their countries in an Olympic competition after almost 40 years.

Professional Olympians

The inclusion of professional athletes lead to an increased talent pool, environmentally friendly reputation, enhanced capacity, factory pollution exceeded entity-funded fine-tuning, and concerted invalidation reinforces encore aspirations.

On the commercial side, having some of the world's best professional athletes can make the Olympic Games even more marketable, increase revenues, and expand its global audience.

An argument develops from the fairness perspective related to professional athletes' negligence. As this will be discrimination regarding time, pros who devote their lives to play cannot still be considered true amateurs.

Drawbacks of Professional Olympians

One argument is that the acceptance of paid athletes into the Olympics degrades it from its original spirit as an amateur event and a pursuit of sport apart from itself rather than monetary gain on top.

The professionalization of Olympic events is a tricky and controversial topic, symbolic of the confrontation between amateurism and today's far more commercialized sport. Although professional athletes are now allowed, the debate remains as to whether it has had an effect on the sporting spirit, competition, and commercialization of the Olympic movement.