Olympic Medal Efficiency: A Comparative Analysis of Great Britain and New Zealand
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Introduction
You might have seen the Per Capita Olympic Medal Count table.
As great as per capita medal counts are, they aren't how countries fund their high performance programs.
Countries invest in certain sports and so it makes more sense to compare the medals won to the funding invested.
This analysis examines the Olympic performances of Great Britain and New Zealand, focusing on medal counts, funding, and efficiency metrics.
Overall Performance and Funding
Efficiency Metrics
New Zealand demonstrates higher efficiency in terms of both overall medals and gold medals.
Sport-Specific Analysis
Canoe
New Zealand's canoe team achieved remarkable efficiency, securing 4 gold medals with significantly less funding than Great Britain.
Cycling
New Zealand's cycling team demonstrated higher efficiency, matching Great Britain's gold medal count with about a quarter of the funding.
Rowing
Both countries showed similar efficiency in rowing, with Great Britain securing more total and gold medals.
Swimming
Great Britain's investment in swimming yielded medals, while New Zealand did not secure any medals in this sport.
Less Efficient Sports for Great Britain
Taekwondo
Taekwondo showed lower efficiency for Great Britain, with high funding resulting in only one medal.
Boxing
Boxing also demonstrated lower efficiency for Great Britain, with substantial funding yielding only one medal.
Less Efficient Sports for New Zealand
Equestrian
New Zealand's investment in equestrian did not result in any medals, while Great Britain secured multiple medals.
Gymnastics
New Zealand's limited investment in gymnastics did not yield medals, while Great Britain secured multiple medals with higher funding.
Key Observations
- New Zealand demonstrates higher overall medal efficiency, particularly in sports like canoe and cycling.
- Great Britain's larger investments allow for medals across a wider range of sports, but with varying efficiency.
- Both countries have sports where their investments did not result in medals, highlighting the challenges in predicting Olympic success.
Note
The funding data is difficult as it doesn't provide full breakdowns and is just a line item in a spreadsheet for both countries. As a result, the analysis is limited to the information available on the UK Sport and High Performance Sport New Zealand websites.
