I think it is more meaningful with regard to what the article is after, in that it shows the paths to the top very clearly and how that has changed over the yea

I think it is more meaningful with regard to what the article is after, in that it shows the paths to the top very clearly and how that has changed over the years. You could get a clearer picture with your approach of how on average the paths upward have changed, but I don't think that was the goal of the article.