Are we too professional?

In one of Ed Smith's usual thought-provoking articles he ponders the question whether we are mistaken in our belief that professionalism underpins excellence:

"Professionalism was continually invoked as the primary means of improvement, whereas amateurishness was mocked as a laughable relic. But it was often unclear to me what the word professionalism meant. “What we really need,” people would say, is “a good, solid professional win.” How does that differ, I always wanted to ask, from a normal kind of win? In fact, professionalism wasn’t so much a real process as a form of self-definition. We had to become ever-more professional, because that was the lens through which we interpreted progress and success."

The concept of professionalism (often of a MacIntyreian kind) has been considered (and generally celebrated) by a range of authors in the philosophy of sport (for examples below) but perhaps it's time, as Smith says, to realise that unrealistic expectations of professionalism can end up acting as a straight-jacket.

Further Reading:

Howe, P.D. (2004) Sport, Professionalism and Pain: ethnographies of injuries and risk. London: Routledge.

McNamee, M.J., Sheridan, H. and Buswell, J. (2000) 'Paternalism, professionalism and public sector leisure provision; the boundaries of a leisure profession'. Leisure Studies 19 pp199-209.

McNamee, M.J. (2008) Sports, Virtues and Vices. London: Routledge.

Zeilgler, E.F. (1977) Problems in the History and the Philosophy of Physical Education and Sport. Prentice Hall Foundations of Physical Education Series.

Steroids and Forgiveness

Steroids are again in the news, with the formal admission by Mark McGwire that he used steroids during his career, including the season in which he broke the HR record. Much has already been said about this, but I think an interesting philosophical point here has to do with the nature of and justifications for forgiveness.

Some, like Jack Clark, are too angry and upset to consider forgiving McGwire, at least at present.

Others, like Joe Posnanski and Albert Pujols, are more open to it. Former Cardinal Andy Van Slyke is not happy with the nature of McGwire`s confession.

Should "we" forgive McGwire for his transgressions? In a world of earthquakes and grinding poverty, this can seem of little consequence. But forgiveness is a key component of flourishing human relationships, and so I am wondering if anything can be learned from McGwire`s situation?

Intellectual Muscle

Intellectual Muscle is an eclectic series of talks by prominent and up-and-coming Canadian intellectuals on topics related to the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Public lectures will be delivered at universities across Canada and made available online in podcast form. The online program will include polls, discussion forums and other interactive features, providing Canadians with a unique opportunity to participate in a series of national dialogues.

Intellectual Muscle, developed by Vancouver 2010 and the University of British Columbia, in collaboration with universities across Canada and The Globe and Mail, will run from September 2009 until the end of the Games in March 2010.


(Thanks to Gabriela Tymowski for the link.)

IAPS Session at APA New York December 28

International Association for Philosophy of Sport Session

at The American Philosophical Association Eastern Division Meeting

New York Marriott Marquis

Monday, December 28 9:00-11:00 a.m.

Chair: Heather Reid (Morningside College)

Speakers: David Charlton (Western Michigan University) “Winning Isn’t Everything: How the Monetary Structure of the BCS May Provide an Incentive to Lose”

David O’Hara (Augustana College) “Sport, Religion, and Value: Considering the Possibility of Renewing an Ancient Connection”

Steffen Borge (University of Tromsø–Norway) “Towards a Taxonomy of Sports”

***Participants, IAPS members attending the conference, and anyone else interested in the philosophy of sport are invited to join us for lunch at a nearby restaurant immediately after the session***

Attractiveness and Victory?

As if winning at an elite level was not already hard enough, it appears that there may be some sort of relationship between physical attractiveness and victory. (HT: Rob Sica for making me aware of this.)

Federation Inefficace de Frivole Impuissant

But the backdrops peel and the sets give way and the cast get eaten by the play, there’s a murderer at the matinee, there are dead men in the aisles... And the patrons and the actors too are uncertain if the show is through, and with sidelong looks await their cue... But the frozen mask just smiles.
“The Vicious Cabaret”, Alan Moore – V for Vendetta

If there exists a divine comedy in sport today, it must surely be football. Okay, perhaps not ‘divine’, and not football the game you understand, but Football the Theatre. All the world’s a stage for the slapstick ineptitudes of FIFA, UEFA and their assembled minions, and unlike the World Wrestling Federation, they seem not to realize it. To its credit, the WWF at least challenges the proverbial idea of a lack of honour amongst thieves. And at least what Vince McMahon says, goes. No such luck at Football’s Cirque du So Lame.

Arsenal’s Eduardo was recently banned from European competition for diving to win a penalty against Celtic in the Champions League. Arsene Wenger (and no small number of other people) then complained that banning Eduardo in that way sets a dangerous precedent; the UEFA Igors would then have to watch every competitive match played in Europe in order to punish other players in a similar fashion. The unerring logic of this didn’t escape UEFA twice, and it overturned the ban it had imposed on Eduardo.

Chelsea were recently banned from signing new players until 2011 after it emerged that they had induced French teenager Gael Kakuta to sign with them illegally, breaking the terms of his contract with French club Lens. The Court of Arbitration for Sport has subsequently suspended the ban.

And finally, Sir Alex Ferguson was fined £20,000 and handed a four-match (two suspended) touchline ban for calling referee Alan Wiley “unfit” during Manchester United’s 2-2 draw with Sunderland in October. That equates to about a quarter of a week’s wages and the inability to sit next to his assistant during the games. He can, however, sit behind the dugout, all of three extra feet away from his squad.

In the immortal words of Derek Zoolander, “WHAT IS THIS?” A toothless sports association following a policy of appeasement on all fronts in an effort to maintain the illusion of its necessity, or an honest collective struggling under the weight of expectation in the modern version of the world’s game? As the football powers-that-be continue to struggle to make head or tails of the diving problem, the respect problem, the technology problem and the money problem, what emerges from the Stella Gallery is a strangled cry for a rational decision unfettered by the interests of billionaire owners or megalomaniac managers and a myriad of clowns and jugglers. Stop the music, kill the laugh track... and please, Madam Justice, take off that ridiculous wig.

Criticisms of Philosophy of Sport

In the past year, I've encountered the view that philosophy of sport is not "real philosophy," meaning, I take it, that sport is not a topic worthy of philosophical reflection, or that it is not "philosophically interesting." This got me to thinking that I'd like to read a good defense of philosophy of sport against such charges. However, I've been unable to find an extended defense. So, I'm thinking about writing one, and this post is a call for assistance. I'd like to know any references in print that criticize or dismiss philosophy of sport. I don't think there are many in print, as it is more of an attitude that many hold rather than something they have written about. However, if you're aware of any, please post in comments or email me directly (mikedotaustinatsymbolekudotedu).