OH! Magazine - Australian Version August 2016 | Page 6

( Fitness & Motivation )
MICHELLE
BRIDGES

IT'S TIME FOR THE

OLYMPIC
GAMES!

YOU CAN CONTACT MICHELLE VIA:
Web: michellebridges.com.au
Facebook: Mishy.Bridges
Twitter: @mishbridges
Instagram: @mishbridges

Michelle Bridges shares her thoughts about the unhealthy
food sponsors of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
ne of my fondest memories as a
kid was watching sport on
television with my grandad. Grampsy and
I used to sit in front of the telly, roaring in
unison as Booney smashed the poms all
over the MCG, or as the mighty Newcastle
Knights took to the field.

O

I was a bit young for the Lillee era but I
remember him, and I also remember that
in those days Benson and Hedges was an
iconic brand association with cricket, as
was Marlboro with Formula 1 and Winfield
with rugby league. These brands became
synonymous with their respective sports;
which seems pretty weird in today’s
health-conscious world.
Fast forward to a new century, new
thinking, new awareness, and the thought
of physical activity being associated with
unhealthy products like those seems as
distant as a ‘Li-llee, Li-llee’ chant
resounding through the SCG. Except of
course, in the case of the all new 21st
century Olympic Games be held in Rio,
which for my money at least has been
irrevocably tarnished by having junk food
and soft drink manufacturers included as
worldwide Olympic Partners.

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AUGUST 2016 (OH! MAGAZINE)

I’m a realist and I understand the
commercial nature of the Olympic Games.
But I’m figuring that none of these
products featured largely in the athlete’s
preparation for the Games. Far from it in
fact – I’m guessing the only world records
that the average junk food peddler can
claim is more to do with obesity and all
the associated illness that goes with it.
Aren’t we getting past this association?
Can’t we see through this for what it is – a
shameless opportunity to get unhealthy
products in front of many people as
possible?
I get that these are commercial operations
and that have a right to advertise their
products and sponsor events to increase
sales (because they’re not illegal). But
aren’t we getting tired of accepting the
blatant contradiction of sponsorship from
junk food manufacturers of the planet’s
premier sporting event?
We tell ourselves that it’s alright because
the products are legal and the companies
that make them have a legal right to
advertise and sell them. But that’s what
we told ourselves about Benson and

Hedges logos scattered all over billboards
at the cricket back in the 1980s, which in
the cold light of today looks quite
incongruous and dumb.
Junk food may have squirmed it’s way on
to our menus as a legitimate meal choice,
but it really isn't. So in the future, will we
look back at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games
with a ‘Gawd! What were we thinking?'
You bet we will!