1/28/15ADDENDUM 1 LECTURE *Sport overtime (an historical overview) Major eras and culture - Several major eras and culture serve as benchmarks for discussing the history of sport forms andquasi sport action:- Greek civilization - Roman empire - Middle ages (Europe) - Renaissance and age enlightenment - The aforementioned cultures and eras are primarily discussed in reference to sport evolution because of the wealth of information secured overtime- Other civilizations were involved in physical activities of a sporting nature, but few artifacts and written documentation have been excavated or preserved - Ancient china - Africa - North America - Inhabitants of these regions have also served as architects of contemporary sport - Physical act and sport forms - Existed in all cultures - Date back to and traced to antiquity- Evolved from basic survival skills, work, and warfare- Sport means different things in different cultures and societies - International and national sport competitions - Help convey the views, perspectives, and priorities of nation - Social, political, and economic exchange- Organized sport forms - Dramatically changed overtime - No longer a more quest for survival and religious expression - Have evolved into a multibillion dollar global industry - Sport is international in scope - At predetermined intervals notions collectively engage in sport + Olympic Games+ World Cup  Recurring themes- Power and influence - Inequities in society o Ancient Greek Games (1000 BC-100 BC) - Game staged circa 900 BC- Grounded in mythology and religion - Usually held in conjunction with national festival - Festival included games, religious services, sacrifices, music, dance, and ritual feasts - Competitors - Originally males from wealthy Greek family- Wealthy Greek males were the athletes + Financial resource o Warriors sports staged:- Chariot racing- Javelin and discuss throwing - Wrestling and boxing- Archery - Running and long jumping - Pancratium (akin to ultimate fighting) 2/2/15 Ancient Greek Games Olympic competition - Competitions:- Violence and serious injuries were prevalent- Philosophers referred to the games as brutal and dehumanizing- Women, children, and the elderly barred from - Could only participate in festivals - Greek national festivals:- Athletic contests- Religious overtones- Reserved for Greek citizens - Sites linked to religious beliefs- Nemea- Corinth - Delphi Olympia became the most heralded- Its games the most prominentHistorical documentation indicates that the Olympic Games date back to 776 B.C Greek women and sport:- Prohibited from participating and watching Olympic Games- Sexuality questioned of those who participated in sport - Physical prowess not viewed as a female virtue- Few sport outlets available to women - Heraean games held for women o May predate Olympic games o Dedicated to goddess Herao Little or no publicity, promotion, and results maintained  As the Olympic Games grew in stature- Athletes began to compete for their respective city-states- Wealthy individuals employed ringers to train for the games - Slaves, lower class men, and POWs were eventually recruited- Rewards elevated participants to professional status- Cash - Living credits - Reputations - Tax credits - Organizations evolve to protect athletes’ interests- Akin to contemporary players associations Sexism, gender discrimination, class discrimination, politics and nationalism all were evident in the early Greek games - Athletes specialized so much that they were criticized as poor soldiers- Athletes were said to engage in warrior sports but lacked generalized martial skills- Athletes trained for sport competition at the expense of more learned activities - Philosophers referred to athletes as ignorance citizens Ignorant citizen = dumb jock Antiquity = contemporary society  Strengths of Greek games:- Influenced art and philosophy- Model for future sport organization and competition - Prototypic sport venue design- Contributed to the well-being of participants - Games:- Grounded in religion - Lacked complex administrative structures - Non-revenue generating events (no fee)- Minimal record keeping, standards, or measurements The prototypic Greek athlete would be the model in sport centuries: white, wealthy, male, able-bodied and young o ROMAN SPORT (100 B.C.-500 A.D) “Blood sports”- Functional aspect of sports:- Soldiers used athletic contests to hone skills for war - Entertainments spectacles for the masses - Penalty phase for criminal justice system - Roman sport orientation:- The Roman Empire incorporated the Greek games into their culture, but the orientation was considerably different - The major goal martial in nature- Aesthetic value and athletic prowess were secondary militaristic proficiency - Bloody contests and death were prominent aspects of Roman sport - Unlike the Greeks, the Romans packages their sport activities for mass consumption. Men and women attend the spectacles. - By 300 A.D. half of the Roman calendar consisted of holidays, in which sport spectacles were staged.- Sport spectacles:- Akin to circuses (circus Maximus)- Major events were chariot racing and gladiatorial contests - Slaves were recruited as charioteers- Betting was pervasive and heavy - Staged to honor emperors, pacify citizenry, and celebrate military conquests - Boxing matches - Bearbaiting and bullbaiting - Human vs animal contest - The narcotizing effect of sport:- Citizens express growing discontent and disfavor toward the ruling class - Emperors often staged sport spectacles to civil disobedience and endear themselves with the citizens - Massive unemployment, extensive taxation, and religious intolerance were major social issues - Sport spectacles, quasi-sport, and crowd control:- Food and drink distributed to maintain order - Raffles and prizes distributed to appease the mass - Contests employed as diversions - Entertainment and disposal of social undesirable - Tied to criminal justice system - Social undesirables - Criminals, Christians, POWs, heretics, and disobedient slaves - Unwilling participants and combatants - Criticism of spectacles and quasi-sports + Public outcry regarding the spectacles + Criticized as tasteless and devoid of cultural value + Concern wasn’t for individual participants Interestingly, many of the objections were not based on moral or humanitarian ideals, but the fraternization between and among social classes (prejudices against the lower