Latest Survey Results: Going for the Gold: Olympic Survey Summary

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Report on Going for the Gold: Olympic Survey

Smart girls decide for themselves™.

To celebrate the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, we posted this survey in August. Maybe you dream of going to compete in the Olympics yourself someday, or maybe you just like to watch them! We asked you to tell us what Olympic sports you play yourself, what you think of the 2008 mascots, and where you'd bring the Olympic torch! We had 228 survey takers from 24 different countries, mostly girls, mostly oldest children, and mostly between the ages of 12 and 14. What were your opinions? Let's take a look!

Quick Trends

While a fair number of you (76) said you weren't excited about this year's games at all, another 62 of you said you were very excited for them.

Again, when it comes to watching the Games, you seemed split. A chunk of you (68) said you wouldn't watch any of them, while the rest of you at least said you'd watch some.

Has your country ever hosted the Olympics? More of you said yes than no, though the majority of you who said your country hasn't hosted the Olympics yet were rather doubtful that your country ever would.

What were your favorite 2008 Summer Olympics sports to watch? Gymnastics came in a resounding first.

Of the Summer Olympics sports that you play yourself, swimming and gymnastics were at the top of the favorite's list. Does that mean we have future Olympians on our hands?

How much do you agree with this statement? "One of my goals is to compete in the Olympic Games."

We have some hopeful Olympians among us!

Efforts are being made to make the Olympics a more earth-friendly event. You believe Olympic organizers should pay the most attention to trying to conserve energy during the Games.

Currently, transgender athletes can compete as the gender they identify with, rather than the sex they were born (that is, someone who was born a woman but who feels as though they are man and lives life as man can compete as a man). Many of you were divided on this issue and weren't sure whether this is a good policy or not.

More than half of you said you are unlikely to watch the Paralympics (the Olympics for athletes with physical, mental and sensorial disabilities).

Which of the five Fuwa, the 2008 Olympic mascots, is your favorite?

Jingjing won by a landslide!

Of the four candidate cities to host the 2016 Summer Olympics, you would most like to see the Games held in Chicago.

Of all the sports that used to be part of the Summer Olympics but are not anymore, you'd most like to see Tug-of-War brought back for competition.

Do male athletes and sports receive more attention in the Olympics than female athletes and sports? While a fair number of you believe this is true, a larger number of you disagree and do not think there is a bias.

Would you ever want to go to see the Olympics in person?

Your Words: If you were head of the International Olympic Committee, what would you want to see happen at the Olympics?

~ "Men and women competing together."
~ "I would like them to build their stadiums in unused place because when they built the stadium in Beijing , they built it over innocent peoples' houses."
~ "I would have recognized the fabulous teams/people of other countries that had great skill, but didn't have the money to travel to wherever the Olympics was being held (so that more people would know the about the potential of that person/team and lend a hand)."
~ "More female recognition. I can name 3 or 4 male athletes but no female ones."

Your Words: What does this year's Olympic slogan, "One World, One Dream" mean to you?

~ "It means, to me, that in this world that we live in, we all have one aim and that we are all equal whether we have different skin colours, etc."
~ "The world may seem very different when everyone is separated into countries, but the Olympics brings the world together to fight for a common dream: the gold medal."
~ "There is only one world, dream and hope as much as you can, because you've got 1 chance. "
~ "I don't know really. We have so many dreams for this world but different nations have different priorities. For me it would be about keeping the planet and its people safe and healthy - dealing with environmental issues, poverty, AIDS, religious crises and other world problems to keep us all together."

Your Words: If you were part of the Olympic torch relay, where would you bring the Olympic flame, on the way to the opening ceremonies?

~ "I would bring the Olympic flame to the countries who do not have many athletes participating to give them a sense of pride and accomplishment."
~ "I think I'd want it carried through some poorer areas, by someone who came from a disadvantaged background, to show young people that there is hope and that they can achieve their dreams."
~ "By the people who won't attend the Olympics even though they live close by."
~ "I would want to bring the flame through Africa, especially in struggling places like Darfur. I would want them to feel included in the rest of the world. We should be helping them. I would also love seeing the expressions on the young children's faces who knew what was happening."

Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with us!

Please remember that all web-based polls are not scientific because the pollsters cannot randomly select the respondents to participate in the surveys.