Armenian Independence as seen through the eyes of Sport

I came across an article by chance yesterday on armenianow about the decline in Armenian athletic performance at the Olympics since independence, the article can be found here:

http://www.armenianow.com/?action=viewArticle&AID=1910&IID=1111&lng=eng


To summarize, Armenia has been quite a source for gold medalists during its tenure in the Soviet Union, but ever since independence the infrastruce and resources necessary to train athletes have disappeared. Dodi Gago, the current chair of the Armenian olympic committee, is promising a return to excellence, but mainly by attracting foreign athletes to compete for Armenia for cash incentives (he is also building up resources as well).

I couldn't help but see this as a microcosm of Armenian independence. Although independence is what we all dreamed of, some of the vital tools for success and sustenance blew away with the collapse of the Soviet Union. It just reminds me that it's always easy to point out the negative influence of communism, only to forget the most apparent benefits that existed back thenn.