I disagree that you have the best athletes as it's impossible to compare them with overseas people. Just because they don't have as fancy a facility doesn't mean anything, as you said it's how hard you train, and Russians or Cubans or Romanians, they all train just as hard.

I don't know how many people train to be athletes in other countries but I can't see it being too far in difference when it comes to per capita. I won't say there is no jealousy, though, I can see what you mean there. I just think that you accused (or questioned) people who were posting nothing to do with being jealous or against US, y'no.

Otherwise I can pretty much agree with everything else you said, I think, so yay.

EDIT: When you say you have better athletes overall, you overlook the fact that in countries outside NZ, most of the sports that are #1, #2 and #3 - possibly even #4 - are all not played in the Olympics, and therefore Olympics isn't any way to judge overall ability. I don't think anyone can honestly say who has the overall better athletes (per population or per athlete). NZ, for example - Cricket? Rugby? Rugby League? Netball? Maybe Netball, if any of them, but I don't think it was there. I don't know what comes after that but I wouldn't be surprised if it wasn't played at the Olympics either. I'm not saying NZ is the best in the world, I'm just saying you have to take into consideration that most US Sports are played there and therefore most US athletes are competing. A lot of countries, like NZ, do not have their top athletes performing at the Olympics.