Why compete when you have no chance?

The last two nights my wife and I watched the U.S. Nationals for figure skating. Yes, I watch skating. I am a sports fan at heart and will watch almost any sport. I even admit to being hooked on watching curling during the last Winter Olympics. The men's final tonight was particularly interesting. The two main competitors obviously do not like each other at all. It was fun watching them being interviewed together before the free skate. Neither one wanted to look at the other and they made it clear they had no real respect for each other. So much for the joy of competition. The competition ended in the first tie I ever remember seeing in skating with Evan Lysacek winning on a tie breaker. As a sports fan it does not get much better. The thing that kept going through my mind both nights though was why a number of competitors were even there. I watched the finals in dance, womens, and mens. In all three there were competitors who knew going in that they never had a chance of finishing in the top 3. So why were they there? Some of them were appearing for their first time as a senior skater so I can understand why they were there. But what about the skaters who knew that they will never be good enough to win a medal? To be blunt they are just not that good. Has no one told them that? Do they think that by some miracle they will skate better than they have ever done before and surprise us? I am all for the underdog coming out of no where and beating the favorite. But lets be honest here. There were way too many skaters that are just not that good. And they never will be championship material. Where is the benefit for letting them compete at such an event? I have been to the Nationals when they were in my hometown. The tickets are not cheap. So if I am paying top dollar shouldn't I only see the best of the best? The sad thing is these athletes compete in other events and do well enough to qualify for Nationals even though everyone, including them, know they have absolutely no chance of finishing in the top three for a medal. I played sports. The fun of competing was always there, but I also wanted to win. If I could not compete well enough to have a realistic chance of winning I stopped playing. Isn't that how we all react? Why compete if you can never win? Does this reflect the idea we somehow came up with in this country that everyone is a winner as long as you do your best? Lets be honest here. Not everyone can be a winner. In this example say you like skating. Fine then keep skating. Just don't waste our time and yours by competing in events you have absolutely no chance in winning. I know this sounds harsh, but somebody needs to say it. In this example skate all you want. Be the big fish in your small pond. No one will take that from you. Just be honest with yourself about how you stack up with the cream of the crop...