In the sentence of the question, to compete is a nominal infinitive and acts as noun. Nominal infinitive phrases can be the subject of a sentence, the direct object, or the object of a preposition; and they has the form: to-infinitive
In my years of life I've noticed the change of use in english, terms and slang have been passed down by generations. Many older adults tall about not understanding modern meanings and that's because new terms were formed as the newest generation were brought up.
