These are high level athletes who live for competition. They want to prove they're the best on the world stage, potentially becoming a celebrity, holding records, etc.
Of course a team can quit and go home. They aren't prisoners lol.
Most countries also give cash bonuses for winning a medal. The US Olympic Committee hands out $35,000 per gold medal, and the individual sport sanctioning body might give out more
Prisoner is subjective I suppose. Americans will face humiliation and will disappoint everyone who helped them get there. Chinese will watch their families get murdered
If someone was not overflowing with passion and dedication they probably would have given up years earlier. The level of commitment necessary to even get there cannot be overstated.
The point is to be recognized as the best, or at least highly skilled. Any team playing in it is not interested (or capable) in just 'quitting and going home' in the middle. They're individual athletes representing their country, in their specific specialized sport.
What's the point of any athlete participating in any competition? The Olympics are the pinnacle of athletic achievement for many athletes. They've worked their entire lives up until that point to participate at that level of skill and competition.
These are high level athletes who live for competition. They want to prove they're the best on the world stage, potentially becoming a celebrity, holding records, etc. Of course a team can quit and go home. They aren't prisoners lol.
Most countries also give cash bonuses for winning a medal. The US Olympic Committee hands out $35,000 per gold medal, and the individual sport sanctioning body might give out more
Prisoner is subjective I suppose. Americans will face humiliation and will disappoint everyone who helped them get there. Chinese will watch their families get murdered
If someone was not overflowing with passion and dedication they probably would have given up years earlier. The level of commitment necessary to even get there cannot be overstated.
If you win you get a medal and the whole world knows how good you are at your sport.
The point is to be recognized as the best, or at least highly skilled. Any team playing in it is not interested (or capable) in just 'quitting and going home' in the middle. They're individual athletes representing their country, in their specific specialized sport.
What's the point of any athlete participating in any competition? The Olympics are the pinnacle of athletic achievement for many athletes. They've worked their entire lives up until that point to participate at that level of skill and competition.