society, culture, and sport

Sport Books Publisher 1

Society, Culture, and Sport

Chapter 20


Topics Covered:

Brief history of sport in the USA Brief history of the Olympic Games Sport and American culture Icons of American sport The business of sport Sport as a spectacle Being an informed consumer


Brief History of Sport in USABrief History of Sport in USA


By analyzing American sport history and by examining the larger role sport

currently plays in people's everyday lives, we can further understand how

sport has come to permeate our culture and society.


New Beginnings (1400s to 1860)

15th and 16th century European explorers and settlers fascinated

by Native American games– Example: baggataway

• To develop warrior’s skill• First viewed by French• Today known as lacrosse

17th and 18th century Hampered development due to church

sentiment and wars


New Beginnings (1400s to 1860)

Late 18th and 19th century End of American Revolution Beginning of First Industrial

revolution– More leisure time– Sports/games develop more rapidly

Mostly social elite sports– Examples: golf, horse racing, target

shooting Bare-knuckle fights

– Initially illegal; slave against slave– Universally accepted end of 19th

century


The Civil War and the Second Industrial Revolution (1861 to 1918)

Ice Hockey Played on a frozen pond

with a wooden puck and a stick

King’s College,Nova Scotia (Canada)

MontrealQuebec (Canada)

New England States (USA)



Baseball Origin of “bat and ball” or “town ball”:

– Abner Doubleday, Cooperstown NY(1839)– Western MA (late 1700s)– Small towns in Eastern NY and New England; (late 1700s)

Origin of modern baseball:– Alexander Cartwright; Knickerbockers Base Ball Club; 1845

Spread throughout the country during the Civil War years

Played by all



Football Originally the “Boston game” First game – 1869

– Soccer rules Rugby rules adopted in 1867 11-man game (versus 15)

– Adopted several years later– Allowed for more control and strategy– Walter Camp – “father of modern football”



Basketball Truly North American in origin Developed by Dr. James Naismith

visiting YMCA Training School (now Springfield College) in MA in 1890– Soccer ball and peach baskets

Developed as a form of recreation to pass away cold New England winters

Spread by YMCA Training School graduates to urban areas James Naismith



Other activities Cycling

– Bicycle craze due to overpopulation and transportation issues

– Development of competitive cycling Car racing

– Invention of automobile– Popular pastime for those who could afford it

Modern Olympic Games– Pierre de Coubertin– Modeled after ancient Olympics


Post-World War I Era (1919 to present)

Post WWI and Great Depression– “Golden age” of sport– American sports icons help nation put painful WWI memories

behind– Beginning of Professional leagues

• The American Professional Football League (1920)– The Negro League of Baseball– Sport seen as form of entertainment that generates revenue

• Athletes paid and traded• Football moved to larger urban areas

– Olympics gained momentum

Post WWII– Economic boom accompanied by emergence of sport, recreation,

and physical activity as important part of our society

Lou Gehrig



Emergence of Mass Media Invention of radio Invention of TV (1950s and 1960s)

– Brought sport icons to people’s homes– Sport perfect medium for TV– Gathered families

Sports popularity in mass media and with it participation in sports grows– Baseball– Tennis – Billie Jean King

Sports on TV influence children and adults

Billie Jean King



Sport for All Amendment XIV – Equal access for all races

– Brown v. Board of Education (1954)– Against doctrine of “separate but equal”/Plessy v. Ferguson

(1986)

Title IX – Equal opportunity and funding regardless of sex– Established the Education Amendments of 1972– Produced a change in attitude toward female athletes and

sports


Brief History of Olympic GamesBrief History of Olympic Games


I Athens, 1896

•First modern Olympics

•Developed by Baron Pierre de Coubertin

•IOC

•Vision: to promote the idea of true armature athletic competition

•James Connolly

II Paris, 1900

•First unofficial appearance of women (golf and tennis)

•In conjunction with World's Fair

•Ray Ewry, Myer Pristein

III St. Louis, 1904

•Also coincided with World’s Fair

•4½ months duration

•First to utilize medal system

•George Eyser

IV London, 1908

•Originally awarded to Rome

•Athletes walked in by nation for the first time

•Ray Ewry

V Stockholm, 1912

•Electronic devices, public address systems, and photo finishes used

•First to have representation from all five continents

•Jim Thorpe

SUMMER


VII Antwerp, 1920

•Olympic flag

•Athlete’s Oath

•Release of dove as a symbol of peace

•Ethelda Bleibtrey

VIII Paris, 1924

•First Olympic village

•Motto “Citius, Altius, Fortius”

•Raising of 3 flags in the closing ceremony

•Johnny Weissmuller

IX Amsterdam, 1928

•Ignition of Olympic flame during opening ceremonies

•First time women were recognized as competitors in “athletic” events (e.g., track and field)

•Elizabeth Robinson

X Los Angeles, 1932

•Began the tradition of honoring victors with their national anthem

•Babe Didrikson

SUMMER

WWI

1914-1918

VI Berlin, 1916

•Cancelled due to WWI

•Still holds the distinction of the Games of VI Olympiad


XIV London, 1948

•Reawarded to London

•First to be seen on home TV’s

•Bob Mathias, Robert Richards

XV Helsinki, 1952

•First time showing of USSR, Israel, and Federal Republic of Germany

•Setting stage for USSR v. USA rivalry

•Harrison Dilard, Patricia McCormick

SUMMER

WWII

1939-1945

XIII London, 1944

•Cancelled due to WWII

XI Berlin, 1936

•First TV broadcast

•Torch relay introduced

•“the Hitler Olympics”: Hitler’s means of propaganda

•Jesse Owens embarrassed Hitler by winning 4 gold medals

•Marjorie Gestring

WWII

1939-1945

XII Helsinki, 1940

•Cancelled due to WWII


XVII Rome, 1960

•Played an anthem that was played back at first modern Olympics in Athens; became the official anthem

•Dominated by USSR

•Wilma Rudolph, Cassius Clay

XVIII Tokyo, 1964

•First time the Games were hosted by an Asian nation

•Volleyball – first women’s team sport

•Billy Mills, Joe Frazier

XIX Mexico City, 1968

•Altitude benefited short distance and disadvantaged long distance events

•Long jump world record made that remained unbroken for 22 years (Bob Beamon)

•Tommie Smith and John Carlos protest against racial segregation in USA

XX Munich, 1972

•September 5, 1972 Palestinian terrorists (Black September) took hostage and killed 11 Israeli athletes

•The first Judge’s Oath was recited

•Mark Spitz

SUMMER

XVI Melbourne, 1956

•First city in the southern hemisphere to host

•Athletes walk together v. by nation for the closing ceremonies

•Wilma Rudolph, Al Oerter


XXII Moscow, 1980

•A U.S. lead boycott by Western nations protesting the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan

•Soviet team dominated

XXIII Los Angeles, 1984

•In response to Moscow Olympics Soviets and other nations boycott

•Huge success; >$200 million profit

•Carl Lewis, Joan Benoit

XXIV Seoul, 1988

•South Korean government refused to co-host with the North Korea

•North Korea and Cuba boycott in response

•Florence Griffith-Joyner, Matt Biondi

XXV Barcelona, 1992

•First time since Munich to be held without a boycott

•South Africa was allowed to participate following abolishment of apartheid

•W and E Germany together

•Russian states separate

•Basketball Dream Team, Gail Devers

SUMMER

XXI Montreal, 1976

•Allegations of suspected drug use were at the forefront of media coverage

•First ever perfect score in gymnastics earned by Nadia Comaneci of Romania

•Edwin Moses, Greg Louganis


XXVII Sydney, 2000

•First time since Korean War, North and South played together

•Women took part in weightlifting and decathlon

•Marion Jones, Michael Johnson

SUMMER

XXVI Atlanta, 1996

•A bomb detonated in Centennial Olympic Park

•2 people killed; 100 injured

•Carl Lewis, Michael Johnson

XXVII Athens, 2004

•Return home after more than a century

•Most expensive in history

•Post-September 11; Extra degree of security

•No incident

•Michael Phelps

Sport Books Publisher 23WINTER

I Chamonix, 1924

•Originally an “International Winter Sports Week”

•Officially recognized as winter Olympics in 1926

•Charles Jewtraw

III Lake Placid, 1932

•First in the Americas

•Sled dog racing appears as a demonstration sport

•Eddie Eagen the only athlete ever to win gold in both Summer and Winter Olympics

IV Garmisch-Partenkirchen, 1936

•First time for Alpine events

•Austrian and Swiss skier boycotted to protest exclusion of ski instructors

•Leo Freisinger

II St. Moritz, 1928

•Sonja Henie, future Hollywood film star, earns first three gold medals

•U.S. wins two gold medals in bobsled and skeleton tracks

WWII

1939-1945

1940& 1944

•Cancelled due to WWI

•Unlike Summer Olympics did not keep their numerical designations


V St. Moritz, 1948

•Return after 20 years to same place

•Germany and Japan not invited

•Gretchen Fraser, Dick Burton

VI Oslo, 1952

•Nordic ski events open to women for the first time

•Dick button

VII Cortina d’Ampezzo, 1956

•First appearance by the USSR

•First Athlete’s Oath taken by a woman

•Last outdoor figure skating events

•Tenley Albright

VIII Squaw Valley, 1960

•First use of instant replay

•Biathlon made its debut

•Women speedskating

•Carol Heiss, David Jenkins

IX Innsbruck, 1964

•Endangered due to lack of snow

•Austrian Army brought snow from the surrounding mountaintops

•USSR dominated

•Terry McDermott


X Grenoble, 1968

•Women underwent sex tests

•The East German Women’s luge team disqualified for heating the runners

•First broadcast in color TV

•Peggy Fleming

XI Sapporo, 1972

•First outside of Europe or U.S.

•Karl Schranz banned for receiving payments from ski manufacturer

•Soviet hockey players, paid by government, allowed

•Canadian hockey boycott

•7 of 8 USA medals won by women

XII Innsbruck, 1976

•Originally awarded to Denver but were removed due to funding issues

•Ice dancing entered as Olympic event

•Dorothy Hamill, Peter Mueller, Sheila Young

XIII Lake Placid, 1980

•Second time in same place

•Artificial snow

•U.S. hockey team defeated USSR, the “Miracle on Ice”

•Eric Heiden

XIV Sarajevo, 1984

•20-km Nordic event for women

•New IOC president

•Phil and Steve Mahre, Scott Hamilton


XV Calgary, 1988

•First in Canada

•Spread out over three weekend

•Speedskating under a covered venue

•Added super G and Alpine combined

•Brian Boitano, Bonnie Blair

XVI Albertville, 1992

•Last Winter Games to be held in the same year as the Summer Games

•Women’s biathlon

•Added freestyle skiing and short-track speedskating

•Bonnie Blair, Kristi Yamaguchi, Nancy Kerrigan

XVII Lillehammer, 1994

•One of the greatest ever

•Dan Jansen, Nancy Kerrigan, Tonya Harding

XVII Nagano, 1998

•First time for Women’s hockey

•Reintroduced curling

•Added snowboarding

•NHL players allowed to participate

•Jonny Moseley, Picabo Street, Tara Lipinski

XIX Salt Lake City, 2002

•Return of skeleton

•Women’s bobsled

•French judge suspended for misconduct; gold medals given to both Russian and Canadian pairs

•Sarah Hughes


XX Torino, 2006

•Italy hosts for the second time

•Extreme snowboard cross added

•Sarah Konrad, Shani Davis


Sport and American CultureSport and American Culture


Sport and Culture

Sport and American culture are intricately intertwined in many significant ways

Example: Olympics continue to be seen as a cultural event as well as arena for athletic accomplishment


The Relationship Between Sport and Culture

Culture represents the ways of life people create in a given society– It is a creation of people, not something that is

imposed upon a group

The relationship between sport and culture can be see in the following three areas:


1. Quest for Excitement Sport appeals to participants’ or spectators’

quest for excitement Sport offers physical challenge and

psychological risks that are hard to find in contemporary society

Examples?


2. The Appeal of Sports

Everyone has an appreciation of the tremendous physical skills required to participate in high level sports


3. Sport’s Cultural Significance

Because of our need for development of social identification and rivalries

We need to be part of a collective whole and to identify with our accomplishments

Example: “The Miracle on Ice”


What is Sport Culture?

Development of sport allowed the formation of a myriad of new social groups

These groups formed their own criteria for acceptance to an inner circle, thus creating a “culture” within a particular sport

Sport culture is constantly redefining itself

Spectators have developed their own distinguishing social groups by aligning with a particular team


What is Sport Culture?

Sports Fans Versus Sports Fanatics

Sports fans:– Passive admirers or true devotees– Have true appreciation for the game – Consider themselves as outsiders (i.e., can’t change the

game)

Sports fanatics:– Have difficulty dissociating from the game– Sport becomes and obsession– Believe they can actually change the outcome– Often engage in unruly behavior


Icons of American SportIcons of American Sport


Baseball

Satchel Paige– One of the most dominant pitchers – Career of >4 decades and >2,500 games– Started in Negro League (1920s)– One of the early pioneers in breaking the color barrier in

professional sport

Lou Gehrig– The original Iron Man– Played 2,130 consecutive games– In 1931 hit 181 RBIs (still an American League record)– In 1941 died of ALS, now referred to as Lou Gehrig's

disease

Lou Gehrig


Football

Walter Payton– All-time leading rusher in professional football (until 2002)– 2 time NFL MVP (1977 and 1985)– Spent entire career with one organization – Chicago Bears – High community involvement

Vince Lombardi– Named the coach of the century (2000; ESPN)– Head coach of the Green Bay Packers (1958)– Super bowl trophy now called the Vince Lombardi Trophy

Vince Lombardi


Professional Golf

Mildred “Babe” Didrikson Zaharias– First and probably the finest female professional multi-sport

athlete– Basketball, track and field, golf– First female to participate in men’s professional golf

tournament (1945 Los Angeles open)

Eldrick “Tiger” Woods– Youngest golfer to achieve a world #1 ranking (age 21)– By age 5 was featured in Golf Digest magazine– Youngest golfer to achieve U.S. Amateur Championship

(age 15)– The first golfer to hold four major golf championship titles

concurrently

Tiger Woods


Olympic Athletes Mary Lou Retton

– 1st American to ever win Olympic gold in gymnastics (1984; age 16) Jesse Owens

– Shattered the walls of sports racism by leaving “the Hitler Olympics” (1936) with 4 gold medals

Muhammad Ali– Earned Olympic gold medal in boxing at age 18 (1960)– Outspoken supporter of Civil Rights; refused induction into the U.S.

army in 1967 Wilma Rudolph

– Star Olympic athlete in track and field– United Press Athlete of the Year and the Associated Press Woman

Athlete of the Year (1960) Carl Lewis

– Dominated track and field on the world stage for >decade– Four Olympic gold medals in 1984– Last Olympic gold medal in 1996 at age 35

Wilma Rudolph


Basketball

Michael Jordan– One of the greatest athletes of all time– 15-year NBA career– NBA accolades: 6 championships, 7 scoring titles,

6 Finals MVP trophies, 5 league MVP trophies, 1 Defensive Player of the Year award

Dr. James Naismith– Canadian-born educator known as the inventor of

basketball– Also credited for developing first football helmet

Michael Jordan


Professional Tennis

Arthur Ashe– Ranked number one in the world on several occasions– Better known for being a courageous advocate for social

change:• Racism and apartheid in South Africa• HIV and AIDS

Billie Jean (Moffit) King– Ranked number one in the world on numerous occasions– A tireless advocate for women’s rights– In “the Battle of the Sexes” (1973) King defeated former

Wimbledon men’s champion Bobby Riggs (6-4, 6-3, 6-3)

Arthur Ashe

Billie Jean King


The Business of SportThe Business of Sport


The Business of Sport

Economic factors now dominate major decisions that affect the business of sport

Sport is one of the fastest growing industries in the U.S.

The economic conditions that allow corporate business to thrive are the same conditions necessary for the survival of commercial sport


Gate receipts

Internet hits

Media rights Merchandise

Licensing fees

Revenues from sales of concessions

Sponsorship Other?

The Business of Sport


Professional Sports in North America

Athletes are paid Sports are privately owned

Table. Comparison of minor league versus top NA franchise owners

Minor League Top franchise

Profit NegativeLucky to break evenOwners go out of business

Make millions of dollars

Owner description

Individuals or partnership

Large corporations, wealthy partnerships, or individuals


Amateur Sport in the US

Athletes participate for the love of the game, not for a salary

Do not have owner

Have governing bodies:– President’s Council on Physical Fitness– United States Olympic Committee– Amateur Athletic Union


Sport Sponsorship

An agreement between a commercial company and an individual, team, or sport that in return for money athletes advertise the names of sponsors through:– Clothing lines, corporate logos,

TV ads, and choice of commodities

Found in professional and amateur sports


Sport Sponsorship: Advantages and Disadvantages for Professional Athletes

Money Made

Money Lost


Sport Sponsorship: Advantages and Disadvantages for Amateur Athletes

Allows athletes to give up a job and

train full-time

•Strong reliance = powerful hold by the sponsor

•Sponsors request changes in organization

•Hard to attract sponsors if low TV appeal


Sport Sponsorship: How It All Works

Agreed period of time (months or years)

Sign legal agreement to prevent quick termination if things go wrong– Example: Actions of athlete brings bad publicity– Example: Sponsor is linked with unethical practice

Since this agreement is difficult to terminate, it important to make correct selection


Sport Sponsorship:

The Nature of the Sponsorship

Should companies that sell unsuitable products be allowed to sponsor sports?

Amateur sports: many colleges and universities no longer willing to sign agreements with unsuitable sponsors

Professional sports: many franchises are sponsored by precisely such organizations


Sport as a SpectacleSport as a Spectacle


Television

Televised sports have become a form of sportainment– The equivalent of a TV movie that claims to be based on a

true story

Sports account for a growing proportion of income made on the sales of commercial time by television companies

TV companies are therefore willing to spend an escalating amount of money for the rights to televise certain sports and sporting events


Newspapers

~1900’s 1920’s TODAY

One sports page in common

newspapers•Sports page expanded to sports “section”

•More daily coverage devoted to sport than any other topic (~25%)

•Sports section = 1/3 of total circulation

•Tremendous circulation reaches millions of readers

•Large advertising revenues for newspapers


Books and Magazines

Magazines– About major and minor sports– Popular content: biographies, statistics, pictures,

all forms of news– Magazines about sports in general are harder to

find and generally sales have not done well (exception: Sports Illustrated)

Books– Popular content: (auto)biographies, coaching, and

training– Less popular content: novels based on sport


Radio

Before TV, radio was #1 media form

Advantages of radio (versus TV) live event broadcasting:

– Company: More economical because it involves smaller # of broadcasters and producers

– Listener: Costs less, more mobile – therefore can do other things at the same time


Film and Video

In spite of their dramatic content, sports are not a popular topic for films and videos

Video collection of sporting moments and instructional videos remain popular


Internet

Unlike other media forms:– Allows the consumer to access information

at the time of his or her choosing– Not limited to sequential programming

Use of Internet:– Extension of existing media– Fantasy leagues


Being and Informed ConsumerBeing and Informed Consumer


Sport commercialism, as well as our rich sports history, impact on us as individual consumers

Corporations have a financial interest in the average American citizen – U.S. high school student


Factors Influencing Student Participation

People participate in physical activity (PA) for different reasons at different points in their lives

Issues considered by high school students will be different than those considered by adults


ParticipationIndividual

perception of sport and PA

Commercial interests

Media influences

Teacher or coach

American athlete role

models

Other ?


The Benefits of School and Community PA

School and Community PA

Improved fitness levels

Improved self-esteem and overall mood

Lower hospitalization

costs

Greater overall acceptance by

one’s peers

Development of school spirit

Improving cohesion among students and

faculty

Other?

Lower hospitalization

costs

Improved fitness


The Importance of Being an Informed Consumer

Advertisers constantly tell us that what we currently have comes up far short

We will almost always feel the need to buy more and better sports and exercise equipment


Technology

Continues to change sports:– Tennis players hit with greater power using

larger, graphite, tightly strung rackets– Golfers have advantage by playing with

titanium heads– Introduction of the flexible fiberglass pole

completely changed pole vaulting– Other examples?

However, the choice of racket or club will make little, if any, difference to nonelite performance

Therefore, it is best to go with less expensive equipment until an advanced level is reached


Clothing

Have performance

benefit:– Heat removal– Windproof– Aerodynamic advantage– Biomechanical advantage of shoes

Again, these technological advances have little benefit for nonelite performance


Summary:

History of sport in the U.S.

Brief retrospective of the Olympic Games

Reflection on some of the most significant American sports role models

Relationship between sport and culture in the U.S.

Sport has become a business and a spectacle

Impact of sports trends on us as individuals

society, culture, and sport

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