Sports And Violence
Violence in sports involves intentional aggressive violence and the occurrence of violence in sports has been escalating within the recent years. Competitive sports, such as football, ice hockey, basketball, may involve aggressive tactics, but actual violence in sports falls outside the boundaries of good sportsmanship. "Sportsmanship is, in a basic sense, conforming to the rules of sport." A great deal of violence is particularly implicated in numerous contact sports such as American football, rugby union/league, boxing, hockey, and wrestling. Violence in sports may include threats, verbal abuse, or physical harm and may be carried out by athletes, coaches, fans, spectators, or the parents of young athletes. Society has played an integral role in provoking the escalation of violence in the world of sports.
Instead of focusing on enjoying sports and getting physical benefits, too many of our sports focus only on winning and coincidentally destroying not only egos but also bodies. This is all done in the pursuit of triumph and is usually achieved at the expense of missing out on the fun and camaraderie aspects of sports. The obsession with competitiveness and winning is far more pronounced among managers and coaches and parents than players. Many coaches think it is correct to use techniques of pushing, yelling, and dehumanizing the opposing team, etc. Coaches also often teach players to sacrifice their bodies unnecessarily, hide all feelings of fear and vulnerability and use sexual insults; however, warranted they may be, to provoke boys to prove their manhood. This can cause many professional athletes to feel pressured and often start a conflict. Some athletes may be genetically predisposed to violence, particularly in male athlete cases that have been found to have unusually high testosterone levels. That is why for males, violence in sports is commonly natural to them. Animal behaviour ethology studies may also lend a clue, as athletes may resort to...
View Full Essay