Coincidence or not? Ranking of the largest medals and economies in the world

On Sunday (8), the whole world said “goodbye” to the Tokyo Olympics and began preparing to host the Paralympic Games from the 24th.

With the end of the Olympics, the “2021 Olympic medal table” was one of the most searched topics on Google. To the amazement of the zero people total, the US tops the medal standings, with no less than 113 medals, and nothing more. China ranks second in the table with 88 medals, and in third place, with nearly half of the medals won by the leader in the rankings, is Japan with 58 medals.

Brazil ranked 12th with 21 medals, 7 gold, 6 silver and 8 bronze. The Tokyo campaign was slightly better than the Rio Olympics campaign, when the country placed 13th with a total of 19 medals.

What is the relationship of the medal table and the world economy to it?

The answer to this question is simple: everything! The top three places in the medal table in 2021 were occupied by the world’s three largest economies, according to a report by economist Alex Agustini, of Austin Credit Ratings, a Brazilian credit rating agency published by CNN.

The report was based on global growth forecasts from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and highlights the ranking of the world’s largest economies in 2021. Check out the numbers below:

1) United States – GDP: 22.675 billion US dollars

2) China – GDP: 16,642 billion US dollars

3) Japan – GDP: $5.378 billion

4) Germany – GDP: 4.319 billion US dollars

5) United Kingdom – GDP: $3.125 billion

… 13) Brazil – GDP: 1.492 billion USD

Now, let’s take a look at the Olympic medal board in Tokyo:

1) United States: 113 medals

2) China: 88 medals

3) Japan: 58 medals

4) Great Britain: 55 medals

5) Athletes from Russia: 71 medals

… 12) Brazil: 21 medals

Note: In the Olympic Games, the United Kingdom competes as well as Britain.

Does this mean you have to be in the top 5 economies in the world to be in the top five on the medals table? In most cases yes, but there are exceptions, such as the team of Russian athletes.

Russia, as well as economic powers in China and the United States, take this sport very seriously, with the so-called “Olympic Reserve Schools”. In 2012, Jornal Nacional visited one of these sites and explained how these sites work.

“We visited one of the schools in the Olympic reserve in Moscow. Four of them are in the city. A total of 36 across the country. Students have not been selected any time soon. It happens in a teenage age, at the age of 14. The school director says there are observers following All competitions held in this age group Outstanding invitees to undergo a special assessment Only then decide whether to enter the school or not In an article published in 1. 19 sports practiced in these centers.

Today, Russia ranks 11th in the ranking of the world’s largest economies, only two places behind Brazil. However, there, sports and sporting events have a different weight, investment and meaning, even if the country is not part of the 3 largest in the global economy.

In the end, the answer to the question that we initially asked is not final, all the major economies of the world are topping the medal table, but it is “only” because of the importance of this or that sport. . What is the incentive to exercise?