Paul Hamm should return his gold medal

On the eighteenth of August, Paul Hamm became the first American man to win the men's all-around Olympic gymnastics competition. Several hours after the medal ceremony, authorities discovered that the judges had made a mathematical error that gave Hamm an incorrect lead of one tenth of a point. This error cost Korean Yang Tae-young the gold medal, leaving him with the bronze instead. If Tae-young's score had been properly computed, Hamm would have won the silver medal. After this information was revealed, a veritable ping-pong game of disputes over morality, bureaucratic red tape and political correctness erupted. The resolution to this mess is simple, however. Paul Hamm should return his gold medal.

The first reason that Hamm should relinquish the gold is also simple: he did not win. Someone who achieved the second place title should not bear the first-place winner's prize. Although the mistake that allowed him to think that he won was not his fault, it is his responsibility as an Olympian and an upstanding representative of his country to attempt to uphold the rule that was broken. Withholding the medal from its rightful owner will only earn him a tarnished reputation as a person, a gymnast and an Olympian.

Secondly, the Olympic Games are not, contrary to popular belief, entirely about winning. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) displays prominently on their website that "Over and above sporting exploits, Olympism is a source of multiple passions which unite the worlds of sport, art, culture and collections. Olympism is a state of mind." Furthermore, "The Games have always brought people together in peace to respect universal moral principles"-- moral principles that, in true Olympian spirit, would cause Hamm to return his medal in the name of honor and fair play.

If it is necessary to appeal to Hamm's personal convictions, there is the issue of legacy to be considered. What does he wish to be remembered for twenty, perhaps even one hundred, years from now? Would he rather be respected and admired for the noble act of returning his medal, allowing the true champion to be recognized? Or would Hamm prefer to have his status as a gold medalist constantly questioned, even disregarded? One would think that Hamm could easily choose the former—a life of respect for representing the true spirit of the Olympics.