It has always been said that a healthy body is a healthy mind. I can see how this works. If you feel good about how you look, you tend to think differently. I know from my own past, the times I have been overweight I felt bad, both in mind and body.
There has always been the idea that a professional has an unfair advantage over an amateur because the amateur is doing the sport as a hobby. The exclusion of professionals has caused several controversies throughout the history of the modern Olympics. 1912 Olympic pentathlon and decathlon champion, Jim Thorpe, was stripped of his medals when it was discovered that he played semi–professional baseball prior to winning his medals. He was restored as champion on compassionate grounds by the IOC in 1983. Swiss and Austrian skiers boycotted the 1936 Winter Olympics in support of their skiing teachers, who were not allowed to compete because they earned money for their sport and were considered professionals.
As of 2004, the only sports in which no professionals compete is boxing (even this requires a definition of amateurism based on fight rules rather than on payment, as some boxers receive cash prizes from their National Olympic Committees); in men's football (soccer), the number of players over 23 years of age is limited to 3 per team.
Most athletes who win or do well get some form of remuneration for their efforts, even if it is in the line of sponsorship.
I think sport is sport, and as long as drugs are not used, and everyone abides by the same rules, let the best win. What do we want for the 2012 London Olympics ? A fair and competitive Games.
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