Final Reflections

Before I took this class, I had never thought critically about the relationship between sport and culture. I knew that sport played a huge role in US society, but never realized the extent to which it shapes and perpetuates larger constructs and issues in society such as racism, sexism, violence, and more. This class has greatly changed my understanding and perception of the US sports culture because it has allowed me to think critically about these issues and how they manifest themselves in sport, and to just become a more aware and informed sports fan.

My favorite topic in class was when we talked about the violence in sports. I thought it was interesting (and I had never thought about) the comparisons we drew between sports and war. Everything from the symbolic uses of flags at games, to comparing a game to ‘going to battle.’ I also enjoyed our discussion on whether or not this comparison was problematic both in the sports realm and war realm. Another thing I enjoyed in class were the debates like when we discussed whether or not college athletes should get paid. I thought it was fun to pick a side and argue it, but the opposing argument still opened my eyes.

I plan to work in sports, so I will definitely take a lot of the information I learned in this class with me! It will be useful in my career and in my life as an avid sports fan.

I really enjoyed this class and would recommend it to a friend! I thought it was challenging but rewarding, and it was material that I was truly interested in which I haven’t been able to say for many other classes I have taken at CU. I thought the class got better when we had fewer journals because it allowed us to keep up with the readings better and be a little less overwhelmed. 

Why the 'Mans Mans' Game is an Insult to Men

This movie is about Rene Portland – she was a basketball coach at Penn State University who discriminated against her lesbian players based on their sexual orientation. She coached at Penn state for over 25 years, during which time she pushed a homophobic agenda as a selling point for Penn state women’s basketball. There were harsh consequences for players who broke her training rules, including suspension from the team. No one stood up to her regarding these issues for years until Jennifer Harris did. They would have scholarships revoked, and she assured them that they would never play basketball again because she would make it impossible to transfer. She threatened telling the University, media, and their parents. Therefore, these women lived their lives in secret or were forced to quit the team or risk facing a death sentence in a sense. All of this makes sport a scary place for LGBT athletes. Additionally, the NFL article calls a player coming out a "milestone event in American pro sports." I question how in 2014 this issue is still so highly controversial, but seeing coaches like Rene Portland make it a little more clear. 

However, I think the world is ready for more high level players to be open about their sexual preference.  Mizzou grad and NFL prospect Michael Sam recently came out as being openly gay and received an outpouring of support from coaches, teammates, NFL players, students at his school, and even recieved a tweet from president obama! I really think that the world needs this, and people are ready for it!

To make a more inclusive culture in American sport I think we need more pioneers like Michael Sam or Robbie Rodgers -- top notch athletes in their sport -- to be open and proud about their sexual preferences. The more people that come out, the more normalized it will be in our society, until hopefully many years down the road it is a non-issue. I believe that having pioneers like Michael Sam is so important because it will begin to show that homosexuality has no effect on athletic performance, can still foster an environment of comradarie among teammates, and will hopefully be a safer place for all athletes.

African American Athletes in Film

Sport plays an enormous role in African American culture. Sport not only impacts every day life, but it largely shapes identities among African Americans. For example, in order for an African American male to be considered 'masculine' could directly correlate with whether or not he plays (and excels) in sports. When we think of the African American male, we often think of an athletic body that perseveres on the court or on the field. African American basketball, football, and baseball players dream of making it to the major leagues in their sport not only for personal glorification, but also to support their families whom often time depend on them for their well-being. Therefore, African American athletes face great pressure to excel in their sport in order to shape their identity and better themselves and their families. 

In the Documentary Hoop Dreams we followed the lives of two African American male high school basketball players in their journey as athletes. Although they were both talented, they faced enormous challenges in reaching the next level in their sport. It goes to show that even when you overcome so much adversity, there are still bigger factors at play that influence the path you are on in life -- some of which were in your fate when you were born because of your given skin color, socioeconomic class, etc. 

In Hollywood movies such as The Blind Side, African American athletes can be celebrated because of their successes on the field. However, a lot of the times these Hollywood movies don't show the struggle, trials, and tribulations it takes for an African American athlete to reach that level. Additionally, even when an African American athlete does have that kind of success on the field, there are still many other factors at play such as racism and white male hegemony. These black athletes are almost always ruled by a white governing force whether it be their coaches, the NFL, their university or the NCAA. 

It's easy for society to speculate that African Americans have come a long way and racism no longer exists in US society because Blacks are so successful in the sporting realm. However, measuring progress by the number of African Americans in professional sports leagues doesn't make sense, because we are failing to consider the role of African Americans in leadership positions. Not only are there not many African QBs, but there are also few African American coaches, athletic directors, executives, etc. Also, we need to start to think of African Americans outside of the sporting realm. There are more African Americans with PHD's than there are professional athletes -- so what about the African American doctors, lawyers? 

We have learned that people of the same race can be more genetically different than people of different races. Skin color doesn't have anything to do with pure biological athletic performance. Therefore, I believe society will be heading in the right direction when we stop glorifying blacks as athletes and entertainers, and start glorifying them for being intellects -- when we measure their success the same way we measure the success of a white man. 

Gendered Advertising

ESPN BODY ISSUE

ESPN Body Issue features many female athletes including US Olympians. It even includes a picture of a paralympic rowing athlete! Although women are equally represented in the magazine as men in terms of numbers, they are represented in distinctly DIFFERENT ways. Some of the women in the Body Issue are seen above. It is important to analyze the way these women are represented compared to their male counterparts because it has very real consequences in our sexist society. 

As Feministing points out, "over half of the female athletes (in the Body Issue) were shown only as passive eye-candy white virtually all of the men were shown in action shots." Additionally:

• 78% of the photos of men depict an active post, while 52% of women depict an action pose 
• 90% of male athletes had at least one active pose in the slideshow, while only 46% of female athletes had at least one active pose in the slideshow 

While the males athletes featured in the Body Issue embody all the charactaristics we associate with athletes -- strong, capable, fierce, powerful -- they women seem to posses complete opposite characteristics. They look glamorous and highly sexualized. With all their make up and hair done, they look more like sex symbols than they look like athletes that compete on an international level. Is this what women are supposed to look like when they enter competition? I have always found it interesting that women will wear makeup to play a sport, but advertisements like this are part of the reason women do so! Whereas males only have pressures on them to compete at a high level, women have pressures of both competing at a high level and looking good while doing it. 

This kind of coverage and representation of women in sports magazines (and commercials) reinforces sexist ideologies in society, creating very real consequences for young people. When young people see these things, they are socialized to believe that women are objects, female athletes are not as capable or important in society as men, and female athletes need to look a certain way in order to fulfill their role. Female athletes are held to a double standard because they are criticized if they are not beautiful, but they are also critisized (and highly sexualized) if they "try" to look good by means of wearing makeup in competition, etc. 

Interrogating inequalities in Sports Media: Examining gender representation at The University of Colorado

Sports do not provide an 'even' playing field for all athletes. Certain races, genders, and social groups have been privileged regarding sport throughout history -- namely, white males. White males hold hold a certain status in the eye of the viewer, leaving them with substantially less obstacles to overcome in sports than say an African American woman, or women in general. Additionally, even if different races or gender are successful in their sport, they are often underrepresented. In this blog post I will be examining the underrepresentation of women in sports media at the University of Colorado within the past two weeks.

When looking at the University of Colorado Athletics website it is clear that is is absolutely DOMINATED by men and men's sports. The first three pictures on the website were the following:

Men's basketball, men in a position of power, and even a crowd consisting of predominantely male students. There was also an advertisment on the left with a picture of a male basketball player to buy tickets to a men's basketball game, and an advertisement to buy Colorado athletic gear from the book store and the ad pictured only men's clothing. The only trace of women or women's sport on the entire homepage was a small link to an article about women's lacrosse. I see the men's basketball team has games against ASU and Arizona coming up, but what about the women's team? They are no where to be found on this main page and aren't they ranked higher than the men? 

I then took to Twitter and checked out the Colorado Buffaloes (@cubuffs). It is also evident that a majority of the tweets in the past two weeks are about mens sports, however, there were a lot of tweets about the women's lacrosse team who had their first game EVER last week. That was a big deal and did get a lot of attention both from the account and from the University, but outside of that the account is dominated by men's sports. There were several recent retweets from the Colorado Football twitter, a sport that is not even in season, but still none recently from any women's teams. 

It is obvious the men's sports reign supreme at the University of Colorado, and this is a reflection of greater society as a whole. However, you can't blame media outlets for covering more men's sports than women's when that is what the people they are trying to appeal to want to see. Maybe covering them more would help gain interest, but I still think people would be more interested in men's sports. Rather, there needs to be a shift in thinking or some kind of movement that can generate more interest around women's sports. 

Reflecting on the Shame of College Sports: Should NCAA Div 1 Basketball and Football players get paid?

According to Fair and Foul, Big time college sports are a contradiction because they severely compromise academic integrity. Schools spend more money on scholarships for athletes than they do for financial aid for scholars. Education of inadequately prepared athletes is a daunting task as athletes in big time sports programs are more than 200 points behind the average student on SATs. The higher ranked the school, the lower the grades and academic standards for athletes. 30-40% of athletes are allowed to be let in at a lower academic standard. Different admission standards for students vs. student-athletes. The Alabama Coach even admits that these young men are 'athlete-students' as opposed to 'student-athletes.' The overarching contradiction is that we have organized a commercial entertainment activity within an educational environment, and in the process we have compromised educational goals. 

However, some would argue that compromising these educational goals for a small percentage of students is worth it since these students in turn, benefit the university tremendously in other ways. College football and basketball are a big business and if universities want to stay relevant they must rise to the occasion and compete. Since they cannot do this without their athletes, I believe that athletes are one of, if not THE biggest asset a Division I university has. For that reason, I believe that college athletes should be paid.

The Time Article - Is itTime to Pay College Athletes?  asks why a player worth so much to his school, town, and college football brand shouldn't be able to sell his autograph for money just like any other celebrity? -- regarding Johnny Manziel. Adrien Peterson also added a comment where he said he cant believe college athletes still can’t sell their autographs for money, or make any money for their performance in college football. NFL rules prohibit players like Manziel from going to the NFL, so instead these players continue to make more money for the university, and none for themselves.  If college football operated under the same business model as the NFL, college football players could make up to $225,000 each per year. However, the only money they make is that of their scholarship -- which is revokable if they don’t perform well on the field. The money instead goes to the university or college town. Football season brings in $86 million/ year and Texas A&M. 

We have this socially constructed notion that college athletes shouldn't be paid, but why? Because that's how it's always been? I challenge that. 

I agree with Taylor Branch in the article The Shame of College Sports that players are exploited and treated as if they are apart of a slave system in a league filled with scandal. Players with immense talent drive millions of dollars into college towns and their respective universities and do not get paid simply because college presidents, athletic directors, and the NCAA decided they would rather keep the money for themselves. I believe that the athlete is the most valuable asset a college has. There are countless instances of an increase in applications after a school has a good football or basketball season. Athletics have the ability to endlessly better an institution in a positive way. 

As the Alabama coach said, athletes are 'athlete-students' who have reported spending twice as much time on athletics than school. We need to stop kidding ourselves that these athletes are at universities to focus mainly on school. I think it's great that athletes have the opportunity to get an education while attending these universities -- except this is not the reason they got into the school, and it's not the main thing they are looking to get out of the school. Not all college athletes will make it to the NFL or NBA, and for those who don't an education is certainly useful. But for the four years they are representing the university, driving in money, sacrificing their body, and passing up other opportunities to compete in sports, I believe they should be paid. A scholarship that can be revoked is simply not enough. 

Sport, Politics and the Olympics

1936 Berlin, Germany -- The Nazi Games

The 1936 Summer Olympic Games held in Berlin, Germany were an event that perpetuated Adolf Hitler's political, racist, and antisemitic agenda, adding to tensions causing World War II and the Holocaust. Germany poured tons of money into facilities and operations to ensure this was a successful event. They also started to use technology at the games, broadcasting on television and radio networks in over 40 different countries. Some of the events of these games included rowing, dressage, track, water polo, swimming and football.

Sage and Eitzen identify five political uses of sport. These include excessive nationalism, use of Olympics as a site of political demonstration and violence, denying some nations the right to partake, nations boycott the games for political reasons, and political organization of the games. All five of these themes were prevalent in the 1936 Summer Olympic Games.

This sense of excessive nationalism is evident in Hitler's political agenda for the game. His political agenda was promoted in subtle ways. He tried to hide violence and racist signs so journalists would report of a peaceful Germany. Instead of swasticas, the country was full of flags and colorful posters and magazines. Most people were unaware that these racist signs were removed. Hitler made sure to show his country in a positive light, and did so by introducing technology to the games and broadcasting this agenda across the world. This allowed him to continue to promote his political agenda without suspicion. It was all a cover up. He wanted everyone to think that Germany was the best country in the world.

Denying some nations the right to partake is seen when Hitler tried to enforce a rule that African Americans and Jewish people (or really, all 'non-aryans) could not compete in the games. This caused individuals and nations such as the United States, France, and Sweden among others to boycott the games for political reasons.

People and entire teams threatened not to come to Hitler's Olympic Games that summer, so Hitler was eventually pressured to relent and let African American and Jewish people compete in the Olympics.

Germany won the games that year with 33 Gold Medals trumping the United States 24 Gold medals and Hungary's 10 Gold Medals. Through these Olympic Games, Germany was able to assert itself as a powerful nation.

This website has a lot of good information about the Nazi Games. 

I disagree with the statement "Sport is pure and devoid of political interference." I would attest to the opposite -- Sport is far from pure and actually full of political interference not only in the 1936 Olympic Games but still today. Sport is corrupt and reflective of society as a whole -- the good, the bad, and the ugly. In the

Just as people used the 1936 Games to promote political ideas, it is still being done today. There is much fear in attending the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia -- it is the most feared Olympic Games to date. According to this article terrorists have planned attacks in the past during the Olympics, including in 1972 Munich when Palestinian terrorists broke into the Olympic village and kidnapped and killed members of the Israeli team. This games could be worse, it argues, as there is threats for a mass attack.

So, to ignore these things and say that sports are pure is false. Those Palestinian attacks were done to show political interference; a way for people, countries, religions, groups to push their own interests and assert dominance whether it be peacefully or through fear.

London Calling: The Globalization of the NFL

The NFL is considering giving London an NFL team. London is a thriving,desirable city with a large NFL fan base. There are already games played there -- for instance, the Jacksonville Jaguars will play there each of the next four seasons. In giving London a team, the NFL would generate tons of money regarding television rights, create a new fan base, and give the NFL an opportunity to compete with the Premier Soccer League. NFL Commissioner Robert Goodell talks about his desire to do so here . 

However, there are several downfalls to putting a team in London. First, it is unclear if London has the right market. When there are NFL games in London now, they are wildly popular but mostly among people from other parts of Europe. They travel semi-long distances to see the games, and although this is feasible to do once a year, it many not be feasible to do for the eight home games of the season. Next, many of these fans already have a team they support. Therefore, even if London introduced a team, it is unclear if people would support the new team or continue to support the team they originally were a fan of. Traveling is also a big concern for the potential London team. The team would be disadvantaged especially when traveling to the West Coast of the US because of the long hours spent flying. Last, there would be several financial issues that would need to be worked out regarding draft picks, taxes, and differences in the cost of living. This would have a trickle down effect for teams in the US and create a big mess. 

This International Business article gives further reasons an NFL team in London would never work, including time distance and the fatigue of players. He compares this to how many Americans have always wanted a team in London, but the time change and travel is impractical. What makes London different? Nothing, he argues. He also discusses how when teams travel to London, they will be disadvantaged, and when the London team travels to the US, the London team will always be disadvantaged. It's simply too much travel. 

There are solutions to many of these problems, for instance, the NFL could give the London team a bigger salary cap or more draft picks. They could have a 'home base' in America -- maybe in Orlando. The NFL could also create special scheduling to accommodate this team. However, making these adjustments seem to complicate a lot of things and create more problems than they are really worth.

Sociogenesis of Rowing

Rowing is one of the oldest and most traditional sports. It first became popular in ancient Rome, Greece, Egypt and many other empires where rowing served as a means of transportation during both war and peace times. It didn't take long for people to start using rowing as a means of competition and racing. Rowing then developed in England where official races were organized on the Thames River. The first documentation of these events goes as far back at 1716. The first official race between two 8's was between Oxford and Cambridge in 1829. This marks the date of the beginning of rowing as an official sport. Rowing was an Olympic sport in the first Olympic Games in Athens, Greece in 1839.

Formal competitions have made rowing increasingly popular, namely the ability to watch the exhilarating sport in the Olympics. The sport has reached every corner of the world. In the 2012 Summer Olympics, some countries represented in rowing include Uzbekistan, Russia, Peru, Romania, Japan, and Iran. A similar race to the Oxford/Cambridge race has since ensued in the United States between Harvard and Yale.

Races used to be much more simple. Line up the boats in what seemed like an even starting point, and see who gets to Point B the fastest. However as rowing has grown and expanded, so have it's rules and competitiveness. Boats now line up in stake boats to ensure an exactly even start. I have raced on courses that are completely lined with buoy's every meters. This not only que's the competitor into exactly how far into their race they are, but also ensures a more straight course. Timing is also much more efficient now than it used to be, with picture reviews of photofinishes. I placed first by .002 at the Canadian Henley -- if that race was 100 years ago it would have been a tie!

Technology has also greatly improved rowing equiptment. Boats and oars are extremely high-tech and lightweight. Instead of wood, they are now made out of the strongest and lightest carbon-fiber and other innovative materials. People used to wear much more baggy clothes while rowing, but now competitors wear tight, aerodynamic spandex and race in uni's (one piece spandex uniform).

Although rowing has come so far and reached so many places in the world, I think because the sport is so expensive a lot of people are missing out on it. For example, a new Vespoli 8 would cost upwards of 30,000. That is not including oars, riggers, tracks, seats, footstretchers, shoes, fasteners, etc. Teams also often have to travel far to races which gets expensive. Therefore I think the biggest challenge rowing is facing is that it is almost exclusive to the middle and upper class. The sport could become so much more popular, but we would have to find a way for more people to be able to participate.

Sport in the Ancient World

GREECE: 

In Greece they played sports NAKED. They played sports such as the discus toss, wrestling, boxing, triple-jump, and other sports we don't have now such as the 4-horse chariot race. These sports have rules and regulations similar to those we still have today.The biggest sporting event was Olympia -- seen as the ancient roots of the modern Olympic Games. 

In Greece, spectators went to the games to see blood! Athletes dedicated themselves to Zeus and the purpose of the games were for religious reasons and entertainment. The winners were seen as son's of the God's and received an elevated status in society. Winning was everything. The winner in the 100m dash won millions of dollars in rewards and endorsements. All the runners knew that after the race there would only be wealth and glory for one of them, and similarly to today the loser would be forgotten. 

Only white men participated. Women weren't even allowed in the games. 

ROME:

In Rome, Gladiators were viewed as spectacle. Gladiators can be really anyone in society even prisoners of war. These people become a caged, performing animals. Every second of his day is spent preparing for this in barbaric-like special facilities. The training of Gladiators is similar to that of Roman soldiers. They both need to be conditioned to kill. They are fed high energy food and endure beatings. 

When the crowd roars and one Gladiator wins, they have become a freed man. Similar to Greece, only men can compete. 

No Gladiators are fully protected, so spectators cheer for one man to hit the other in the weak spot.The spectators at these events are the Roman people. They were obsessed with gladiator fights. Winning Gladiators are seen as a kind of celebrity.

Sport, Society, & Me

Growing up with four brothers and parents who were college athletes, I have always felt that I have a strong connection to sports and they play a big role in my life. As an athlete myself, I have spent countless hours participating in sports. However, my connection with sports is deeper than my personal experiences. Cheering for various sports teams, attending games, and being able to bond with my family over our mutual love for the game or team has made me grateful that sports are such a big part of my life. Not only do I like playing sports and watching sports, but I feel that sports has been something that has kept my family so close over the years. Whenever my brothers and I are home from college, I always love being able to hangout with my family on Sundays and watch the game together. 

I believe that US sports are a reflection of US society, both the good and the bad! Although one could argue that competition makes athletes cheat or sports promote hegemony, I believe that the positive role sports play in society greatly outweighs the negative. Sports teach teamwork, hard work, discipline, physical fitness, promotes friendships, creates healthy lifestyles, etc. I have come to this conclusion because sports have personally been a positive influence in my life and taught me more about these things than I could have learned any other way. 

Athletes hold a very elite status in US society. They are celebrities in the sense that they are constantly in the public eye, make huge salaries, and have a fan base. Some are highly respected, while others are hated. Regardless, athletes are very highly valued in the US but I find it interesting that fans are so harsh on athletes when they mess up because after all, they are only human. 

The Sport Ethic

Sport ethic is a living conformity of a "real athlete" that creates a clear cut vulnerability to deviant behavior. 

According to Hughes and Coakley there can be positive deviance experienced  by athletes. The four dimensions of this are as follows:

1. Being an athlete involves making sacrifices for the game

2. Being an athlete involves striving for distinction 

3. Being an athlete involves accepting risks and playing through pain 

4. Being an athlete involves refusing to accept limits in the pursuit of possibilities

Hughes and Coakley present studies in which athletes overconform to these deviations to the point where they become norms within their sport group to such an extent that their sport participation was disruptive to pretty much everything else in their lives. This inculdes family relationships, work responsibilities, and even their own physical health and comfort. Athletes conform because their sports mean so much to them and are such a huge part of their lives, that they are willing to do anything it takes to succeed or even get a small edge up. They also see people around them such as their teammates conforming, so they feel like they need to. 

I feel like I have definitely experienced all four of the distinctions. I was a rower in high school and made so many sacrifices for the sport including not being able to do a lot of the things my friends did such as attend social events, stay out late or even have free time. I practiced both before and after school, but the distinctions were worth it as I placed at nationals four years straight and earned a scholarship to The University of Alabama, among others, which I eventually passed up. I wanted to be the best and was willing to row through the pain -- for example, my junior year I rowed at the Head of The Charles with a torn ligament in my shoulder, but it was worth it when we did well! Being an athletes means always buying into the system and believing the sky is the limit, no matter what your limitations actually are. 

Sport(s) in the USA

        Although there are many competitive sports in America, I believe that football is the most popular by a landslide. Basketball, baseball, and maybe even hockey are close seconds depending on geographic location in the country, but I think that throughout America football reigns supreme. This is evident in it's TV scheduling as football games are always in primetime on major television networks. One thing all the 'popular' sports in America share is that they are all extremely competitive, physically demanding, team sports. Additionally, only men's sports are popular. 

        When I think of the typical game day in America, I think of team merchandise, good times with friends supporting your team, and lots of beer! Fans often 'tailgate' in parking lots of the stadium before games. This includes grilling food, consuming alcohol, and fostering an environment of camaraderie among fans. A perfect day for a tailgate would be 60 and sunny, but fans come out and do this no matter what the weather conditions are! 

        I believe that success in US Sports is measured by how much athletes are paid, their celebrity status, the success of their team, and the legacy they leave on their respective sport. Athletes in America are very highly paid, especially in Baseball. Top (or controversial) athletes in each sport obtain a type of 'celebrity status' with a huge fan base and lots of speculation from the media. More appropriately, athletes are recognized for their on the field (or court) play, where 'successful' athletes are the very best athletes at their sport. Athletes are also seen as successful if they are a 'team player' and help their team and teammates reach that successful status. I believe