The Olympics and Political Presence

Throughout the twentieth century, there was hope that sports would improve foreign relations and create a model for cultural, economic, and political relationships. However, recent history shows that most nations use sport to pursue self-interests rather than international understanding (Coakley, 2007). There is a certain level of prestige associated with hosting global sporting events, such as the Olympic Games. This prestige is the subject of most nations’ objectives in establishing a global initiative toward sport. The theory goes further to reveal the politically–based competitive nature of participating nations. The Olympics can provide international recognition and the platform to exercise political power through sport.

It is not difficult to prove that events like the Olympics hold global political influence. If anything, the Olympics can provide a platform for political and cultural ideologies to be set forth. In the 1972 Munich Olympic Games, members of the Israeli Olympic team (see image below) were held hostage and executed by a Palestinian militant group associated with Yasser Arafat’s Fatah organization. Since it had only been 27 years since World War II had ended, an Israeli team participating in the Olympics being held in Germany was significant in many ways. The Jewish team members felt they were taking a stance against the Nazi’s of the past, by showing the resilience of their people. As in this case, nations often link political and religious ideology. On a global impact, the 1972 Olympic Games created an unimaginable display of political influence in sport.

In 1980, the Moscow (Soviet Union) Olympics saw the largest boycott ever by the United States and 61 other countries, protesting the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Many nations participated in a secondary event in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania called the “Liberty Bell Classic”. Fifteen countries that participated in the Moscow Olympics, protested in the Opening Ceremony by marching the Olympic flag rather than their national flags. When competitors won medals, the Olympic Hymn and Olympic flag were used.

In 2001, talk began to center on Beijing and the 2008 Olympic games. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) granted Beijing the Olympics under the proviso that human rights in China would improve. However, many countries considered boycotting the games altogether. During the games, it was difficult to hide the competitiveness between China and the United States for the medal race. According to Sports Illustrated, following being awarded the games, China launched “Project 119” which was an initiative designed to improve their medal take in the 2008 Olympics. The project was representative of the 119 gold medals that were awarded in the 2000 games, of which China only received one. At the end of the 2008 Olympics, China received the highest ever – a total of 100 medals (51 gold). The United States received 110 total medals, only 36 being gold (Meyer, 2009). The political power implications in this case are undeniable. China is a communist nation, hosting a global initiated sporting event, driving economic growth and competing as a top-tier athletic organization in the Olympics. Representation of political power can be achieved through the Olympics, case and point – China.

Doping in Sports - Why?

We’ve all seen the headlines and heard the allegations – Marion Jones, Mark McGwire, Barry Bonds, Lance Armstrong, Floyd Landis…the list goes on. The real question is whether the issue of doping is societal or psychological? One could argue both, but we look at the societal factors in play here.

The world is becoming ever-growing and fast-paced. We are taught that in order to keep up with others, we must be competitive. We must work extremely hard to reach the top and continue to perform at high levels to ensure we remain there.

“Speak up or you won’t be heard”

“Be all you can be”

”Get a degree so you will get a better job”

“Get another degree so you get an even better job”

“Work hard for that next promotion”

“Give a 110%”

These are the values engrained in us by society, starting with our parents. Eventually the media takes over and begins forming our thoughts and beliefs on what it is to be successful. The media is reflecting what is believed by our society that in order to be great, we must give everything we have. We must sacrifice. If you work hard enough at anything – you will succeed. Our society defines success in many ways, but is mostly measured through money and status.

So what happens when you are a professional athlete? You trained at 110%, made your sacrifices, worked harder than everyone else, but it isn’t good enough anymore. Perhaps you are coming of age and cannot keep up with the younger, faster and stronger athletes. Perhaps your performance is not opening greater opportunities financially. Perhaps for a moment in time, your intense desire to be “great” outweighs the consequence that may ensue. Whatever the reason may be, professional athletes feel the pressure to become bigger, better, stronger and more productive in their careers. Our society has become enthralled with the successes and failures of its professional athletes. Our society has also placed a great significance on monetary gains and elite status – both of which are synonymous with successful professional athletes. In the end, the athletes themselves must make the ultimate decision to dope or not to dope. Psychological factors definitely play a huge role in why some do and others do not. However, we cannot ignore the fact that our society is driven off certain images of success. Professional athletes have an enormous amount of pressure to succeed in the short time they are active. A professional athlete’s income is much like a bell curve - where the bulk of income is generated in the middle of their career when their performance level is at its peak. Once age and novelty begin to wear, their value as a player and role model in our society decreases as well. They become expendable to organizations and sponsors which add to the overall pressure to succeed. Some would say – “Well that poor professional athlete, life must be so hard being rich and famous.” True enough, there is no excuse for cheating. However, we cannot ignore the outside factors playing a significant role in the issue.

Media Coverage & Women's Sports: Chicken or the Egg?

In the top-rated, most circulated, American sports publication (name held anonymous) – only 8% of the total coverage focused on women’s sports or athletes. That figure was generously calculated from a sample of 6 editions covering a 3-month period (May – July 2009), with “coverage” being defined as the name of a female athlete mentioned, an advertisement featuring a female athlete, an image (despite size) shown, or a full article. Taking these statistics into consideration, the following are facts:


Between May and July 2009…

1) The LPGA had 7 tournaments, with the total purse for all 7 events totaling $19.3 million.

2) The WNBA, the WPS (Women’s Professional Soccer League), and the NPF (National Pro Fast-Pitch Softball League) were in the heart of their seasons.

3) The NCAA Women’s College World Series took place, where the Washington Huskies went undefeated in the tournament, taking the Championship for the first time in history and finishing the season with a 50-12 record. The MVP, All-American and National Player of the Year, Danielle Lawrie, pitched six complete games in six days to take the championship for her team.


What forces in our society drive this disparity between men’s and women’s sports? It’s no secret that women have fought inferiority over the course of history. Women’s rights have been subjected to contempt and judgment; the right to vote, the right to equal pay and job opportunities, the right to gender equality. These same societal forces have played an undeniable part in women’s sports. In the early 1900s, medical doctors warned the public that playing sports for girls would deplete the necessary energy needed to conceive and bear healthy children (Coakley, 2007). Organizers and sponsors of sports during this time challenged that sport participation was not as important in the character development of females as it was for males. The opportunities for females to become involved in sports were limited, and often restrictive. It was not until after Title IX was passed (1972) that growth was seen in female athletic participation. Even at that, the mere expectations of female athletes are different. Think back to the 1999 Women’s World Cup. The moment when the USA’s Brandi Chastain scored the game winning penalty kick goal versus China to win. The real question is would anyone have still remembered that moment, if it was not for the controversy that arose afterwards? Controversy - because she removed her shirt in traditional soccer celebratory fashion, something Chastain’s male counterparts have done for years without ridicule.

The typical response is that women’s sports and female athletes do not receive as much coverage because their popularity does not compare to that of men’s sports and male athletes. If so, which comes first? Women’s sports are not popular so the media chooses not to cover it, or the media chooses not to cover it, so women’s sports do not gain popularity? The media is an influential and powerful entity born from our society.

Introduction

Do you often wonder where did sport come from? How did our society become so enthralled and integrated with sports? The answer is this: sport was born from society. The earliest records of sport date all the way back to the prehistoric ages. As society has changed over time, so has the role that sport plays. Sport is derived from the most basic element of a society, and that is its people. This basic human element is what comprises the sociological and cultural factors that we see arise in today's world. Factors such as race/ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation and economic status, have been heavily debated time and time again. With each human element brings a cultural influence into sport. This blog was created in order to address these sociological and cultural issues present in sports today. This blog was created to ask questions…not give answers.