Can we have two golds? | Hacker News Reader

Can we have two golds?

reuters.com

30 pointstosh7 comments

I'm a former high jumper and I have mixed feelings about this… I'm happy for them and it was a really great competition. A jump-off is brutal and can be kind of humiliating as you are exhausted physically and mentally and the bar can go down multiple times until someone passes again.

But I have been in a jump-off once, and I don't recall this was an option, I don't know if the rule was changed recently or if we just didn't think of asking it at the time.

I guess my unease is that if this is an option why would anyone ever choose the jump-off instead? In terms of game-theory it would never make sense. And I guess you could make an argument that they both get silver if they refuse to continue.

Curious to see how other people in other sports would respond to this. Don’t think MJ would want to share his MVP prize:) the 4 year cycle of olympics must make a difference.

The alternative was to put the bar down until they found a height that they didn't fail at which seems somewhat humiliating in itself.

And they both get gold. I do not understand how this is spun into a feel good story. It's like you are told something is nice so you have to believe it.

I guess giving out gold medals is nice, so giving out more is nicer....

Italy's bonus is $212,400 USD for Gold & $106,200 USD for Silver, so that's also not putting $100,000 on the line.

Oil rich Qatar's bonuses in the past have also been 'generous'

These two had a bit of additional history - 11 years of friendship and they both suffered similar (the same?) injuries that they helped each other through. They were close enough that one was invited to the other’s wedding. It seems like if the tie had been between any other pair of competitors this would not have been the outcome.

Finances may have been influential as well, of course.

Yes, you are right, two mates getting to share a medal is a legitimate feel good story.

Some news outlets sell it like 'gamesmanship', which I guess I object to. It was totally not stupid.

Even for a random person if someone said, would I make them lose their gold medal so I'm the only one with a gold I think I'd chose no. But to make them lose it at the risk I might lose mine would be a little crazy.

I love the sportsmanship of sharing, good for them.

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