Whether anyone cares or not, of course, is their prerogative but such declarations or controversial moments can cripple or become a fillip for international events.
Ill-timed ones can buff the sheen. Unless it is the Fifa World Cup, when Luis Suarez's chomping on someone's shoulder can become an ideal catalyst to jolt fans out of a self-induced slumber.
This morning, when 71 flag-bearing countries, including Valerie Adams at the helm of the New Zealand contingent, march out at Celtic Park, Glasgow, the Commonwealth Games will need not just a spark but mega fireworks to maintain TV viewership.
As expected, politics has kicked in and the demolition of battery chicken-type Red Rd flats will not be part of the spectacular promised to be telecast to wow the 40,000 at the venue for "a billion" TV viewers.
Even the Jilli Blackwood-designed Scottish team's uniform, featuring a teal-coloured shirt and tartan kilt/wrap-around dress and shawl, will take backseat to everything that will unfold in the arenas of contention.
That's because the Games is a colonial hangover, desperately clinging to remnants of an empire that lost its footing many moons ago.
They do not represent the zenith of sporting achievements and critics are questioning the value of investment in it when money could be better spent on keeping a nation active at home.
They simply provide an artificial platform for bantam-weight sporting nations, such as England, Canada and Australia, pretending to be heavyweights as they pummel minnows into submission in various disciplines.
The Ethiopias and Kenyas of this world will bring joy to the have-nots in their traditional events but, effectively, the Commonwealth Games is nothing but a poor person's Olympic Games.
Running barefeet, in the mould of South African Zola Budd late last century, would undeniably make a more succinct social statement.
It reminds me of the South Pacific Games where islanders more often than not returned home with trophy spouses from rival countries to make headlines rather than medals.
Usain Bolt and Mo Farah are headlining the athletics department in Glasgow but the Jamaican world champion sprinter will only compete in the 4 x 100m relay.
Was Bolt offered some sort of appearance fee?
It begs the question of New Zealand sending Adams to Glasgow.
You might as well hand over the gold to the Kiwi shot putter at home and let her watch the others scramble for silver and bronze from the comfort of her lounge.
I remember the thrill of watching a virtually unknown Nikki Jenkins clinch a gold medal in gymnastics at a time when the country needed a sporting hero.
But that was 1990 when we only had TV1, TV2 and TV3.
Jenkins didn't go on to perform on a bigger stage, such as the Olympics or a world championship, but one can argue in that sense the Commonwealth Games can be a stepping stone and reinforcement for some to aspire to reach for the higher echelons of sporting endeavour.
Nowadays the social, economic and political debates overshadow the Games and suggestions of effort, fairplay and other such warm fuzzies are hollow sentiments.
Fewer cities are keen to gamble as hosts in two-horse races, with a rash of late scratches imminent as the deadline draws closer.
Claiming to be better than the 2010 Delhi Games or Sochi Winter Olympics last year are meaningless yardsticks.
Scribes and lobby groups are increasingly questioning if the Commonwealth family is hiding under the umbrella of the most homophobic of countries in the world.
For argument's sake, in 42 of the 53 Commonwealth nations it is reportedly still a crime to be homosexual.
Now you see why I believe Thorpedo may have shot out of the starting blocks too early. Like it or not, sport is politics.
In the yesteryear pedigree sport on TV was a rarity. You were lucky to enjoy an enthralling game of footy live once a week, let alone see the elite dance in the boxing ring, cycle on featherweight bikes or cover laps well before controversial full-body swimsuits surfaced.
While the colour of Jenkins' medal was enough to make her the darling of advertising gurus, it is fair to say the pressure and expectation to emulate that feat at the Olympics or world championship weren't there.
This weekend, the Super Rugby semifinals and the Warriors v Manly Sea Eagles will fixate countless Kiwis.
For me, though, the Highlanders epitomised what playoff footy was all about even though they narrowly lost to the Sharks in Durban last weekend.
