Cultural History Commons^™

Tiger Woods And Roger Federer, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

In these first few weeks of college and professional football, upsets seemed to be the rule rather than the exception. There are two sports where upsets these days are as rare as a Cubs’ World Series victory. In golf and tennis, it is nearly always Tiger, Tiger, Tiger and Roger, Roger, Roger. These two athletes have established an astounding dominance in their sports as both enter the prime of their careers. They are both on pace to rewrite the record books and end their careers as the greatest players in the history of their sports.

Late-Summer Wackiness, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

After a break from writing this column for several weeks, I am at a loss as to where to begin. The last few weeks have been full of stories from the wacky world of sport, and with the beginning of college football, the number of stories of crime and corruption have increased geometrically, although in fairness, the colleges have no monopoly on these.

Baseball Milestones: Barry, Alex, And Tom, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

Over two weeks ago before taking a short vacation to escape the heat and humidity of Florida, I saw the Barry Bonds home run that tied Henry Aaron. That same day Alex Rodriguez hit his 500th home run and all those fans with steroid anxiety suddenly discovered a new hero. Even before Bonds had officially passed Aaron, A-Rod became the Great Clean Hope who would surpass "Mr. Bonds," as Bud Selig so warmly called him, and bring the home run crown back to the kind of people who hold it by divine fiat. The next day Tom Glavine won his …

Corruption And Transcendence In Sport, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

The last few weeks for sports fans have been particularly difficult ones. The stories of corruption are so overwhelming that it is a wonder that anyone can keep their focus on sport.

Dogfighting Culture, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

It's difficult to know what to say about the Michael Vick story, and it might be wise to say nothing just yet. It does, however, bring to the forefront some interesting bits of history concerning what constitutes sport, the relationship of sport to gambling, the confluence of sport and masculinity, the evolution of what is seen as civilized and barbaric behavior, and the ways in which people react to that behavior.

The 2007 All-Star Game, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

Baseball's All-Star Game is coming up tonight at the baseball facility formerly known as PNC Park, and the home of baseball's current leading villain, Barry Bonds. In a surprise to many, Bonds was voted to the National League starting line-up by the fans, who allegedly are disgusted by the poster boy for performance enhancement. The cheers tonight will be thunderous as Barry is introduced in the only ballpark where he remains a great hero, and even a beloved personage. The cheers will be even louder when baseball honors Willie Mays. These cheers will be echoed across the land for one …

Williams, Federer, And Nadal At Wimbledon, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

At the beginning of play in the Gentleman's Final at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on Sunday, I believed that at the end of day Rafael Nadal would be crowned new champion and heir to the mantle of Roger Federer.

Barry Bonds At 750, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

It has been a summer of milestone achievements in baseball, with the promise of more to come. Sammy Sosa reached the 600 home run mark two weeks ago and Frank Thomas reached the 500 home run level this past week, on the same day that Craig Biggio reached the 3000 level in hits. Alex Rodriguez will reach the 500 home run level sometime in the next month and Ken Griffey should reach 600 home runs before the end of the season. Gary Sheffield will reach 500 home runs late this season or early next season. These are exclusive clubs in …

Billy Donovan Redux, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

Billy Donovan, who accepted the Orlando Magic head coaching position for the cool sum of $27.5M last Friday, has backed out of his contract. Is there anything to learn from this not very unusual turn of events? The idea that Billy Donovan has broken a contract carries very little meaning in sport, that is if you are an owner, general manager, or coach of a team.

Lebron James; Billy Donovan, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

In less than twenty-four hours, between Thursday night and Friday morning, the NBA produced two major stories. One concerned the essence of sport, the other the distorted values of modern sport. I am writing about the performance by LeBron James against the Detroit Pistons in game five of their Eastern Conference final and about the signing of Billy Donovan as the new coach of the Orlando Magic for over five million dollars a year. Both are jaw dropping performances in their own right, but that by James represents sport and the one by the Magic represents commerce and its twisted …

Bowie Kuhn, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

Bowie Kuhn once said that he wanted to be remembered as the Baseball Commissioner who presided over a time of tremendous growth in the popularity of the game, and a time when no one questioned the integrity of the game. I read these words over and over again a few weeks ago in many of the obituaries published at the time of the former Commissioner's death. I cannot say that this is how I will remember him, and I do not know how history will remember him.

Insuring Mr. Booster, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

They call them revenue streams. You can fish in them but there are no fish to be caught, at least the kind that has gills and fins. Some athletic directors have nightmares in which the streams dry up. Others have dreams in which they discover new streams where no one has fished before. This is the Athletic Director's wet dream.

Ncaa Bans Text-Message Recruiting, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

Every day in every way my admiration for the National Collegiate Athletic Association soars to new heights. Who could not but admire the latest blow delivered by this august organization on the behalf of the purity of intercollegiate athletics?

Jackie And Eddie Robinson, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

This weekend marks the Sixtieth Anniversary of Jackie Robinson's first appearance in major league baseball. It comes at the end of a week in which another Robinson is being mourned across the nation. The tale of the two Robinsons, Jackie and Eddie, is a tale of courage and struggle and the story of how race shapes lives and society in America. It is also a story of gain and loss across the two Americas.

Imus, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

Anyone who has watched and listened to "Imus in the Morning" over the past several years cannot be surprised by the comments that were made last week in reference to the Rutgers Women's Basketball team. The only surprise may be the extreme tastelessness of what was said.

Homophobia In Sport, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

The last ten days or so has seen a convergence of seemingly unrelated events which illuminate or cast a dark shadow around the subject of gender and sport. The most high profile of these events was the announcement by former NBA player John Amaechi that he is gay, an announcement tied to the release of a book. As it turns out, the revelation is only one occurrence in a cluster of discreet moments related to the topic of gender and sport and sexuality, a subject that is seldom dealt with in a graceful manner in our society.

Super Bowl Excesses, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

Over the past week I have revisited several years of Super Bowl columns. After re-reading each of them three questions have haunted me. What are the greatest moments of the absurd and sleaze kind in the history of the Super Bowl? Is it possible for anything associated with the Super Bowl this year to achieve the lofty heights set by previous Super Bowl Experiences? Is it possible for the Super Bowl to continue to grow in scale as it has done every year for the past forty years? These are the pressing questions that cry out for answers on the …

Mcgwire & The Hof; Urban Meyer & Nike, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

I assume that you are sleeping better knowing that the baseball writers of America have sent a message. What that message might be, I am not certain, but there is comfort in knowing that a message has been sent. This week's announcement of the Baseball Hall of Fame voting saw Mark McGwire, once regarded as a Hall of Fame lock, receiving only 23.5% of the votes from the writers.

New Year's Roundup, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

It is difficult to know where to begin after being away from this column for the past few weeks as there are so many bizarre and interesting things that have happened that seem worthy of comment.

This Sporting Life: Sports And Body Culture In Modern Japan, William W. Kelly, Atsuo Sugimoto

CEAS Occasional Publication Series

Yale CEAS Occasional Publication Series - Volume 1

Sports in Japan have long been embedded in community life, the educational system, the mass media, the corporate structures, and the nationalist sentiments of modern Japan. For over a century, they have been a crucial intersection of school pedagogy, corporate aims, media constructions, gender relations, and patriotic feelings. The chapters in this book highlight a wide range of sports, and together, they offer a significant window on to the ways that the sporting life animates the institutions of modern Japan.

The Arms Race In College Football, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

Watching the BCS crash and burn again this year brings to mind a number of developments in intercollegiate athletics that have been accumulating in my memory for the past month or so. Before turning to those less significant topics-as who is number one is always the most important question in intercollegiate athletics-I would like to offer a modest proposal to solve the BCS Championship Game quandary. Given the Ohio State dominance and perfect record, and given the fact that they have already hammered Michigan, the Buckeyes should be awarded the BCS championship outright. No one is close to their level. …

The Breeders' Cup, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

Since the first running of the Breeders' Cup in 1984, I have sat before my television each year and watched the greatest day of horse racing available in this country. I haven't seen all the Breeders' Cups, having been out of the country for a few of them, but have seen most of these great spectacles of racing.

Baseball's New Cba, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

As the World Series came to an end on Friday with Tony LaRussa receiving his latest anointing from the fans of Cardinal Nation (prepare yourselves for another book), others were left to wonder at the fantastic turnaround by the Tigers, who went from juggernaut to gift-givers in less than a week. The baseball story that was of greater significance was the announcement that a new contract agreement had been reached between the Players Association and the baseball owners. Collective bargaining, it seems, has worked once again, establishing a two time winning streak for the players, the owners, and the fans.

College Football Violence, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

It was an ugly scene last Saturday. Players from both teams were pushing, shoving, and punching one another. Some players were thrown to the ground and kicked by others. Coaches and stadium security, as well as local police, got onto the field to try to gain control of the situation, but as soon as they stopped one fight, another broke out.

Tiger Woods And Roger Federer, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

For the past several weeks I have watched with more than a passing interest as the Tiger Woods juggernaut has rolled over the world of golf. Winning five tournaments in a row, including two majors, certainly qualifies as a juggernaut. As I marveled at this run, I began to think about this sort of dominance and what accounts for it.

Sport Drugs And Semantics, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

If you picked up your newspaper one morning or tuned into SportsCenter and you were greeted by the headline, "Tiger Tests Positive," how would you react? Would it be total disbelief? Would you simply dismiss the announcement from the World Anti-Doping Agency as some mistake, or the result of fanatical WADA leadership seeking to make headlines? Would any of you immediately presume Tiger was guilty, and rejoice that he had finally been caught?

Andre Agassi, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

If you were fortunate enough to see Andre Agassi's match with Marcos Baghdatis on Thursday night/Friday morning at the U.S. Open, you saw one of the great moments in modern tennis, at a tournament that over the past decades has offered many memorable matches and moments. Facing retirement, Agassi is playing one final tournament at what has become his triumphant home.

Floyd Landis And Tiger Woods, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

Victory in sport is often no more than the application of skills by an athlete at an extremely high level of efficiency. This is true at nearly all levels of any game. However, in highly competitive situations little things often make a major difference in the outcome. At the elite levels of sport there is a very fine line between victory and defeat, and between flawless and flawed performances. Any intrusion into the concentration of the athlete can be a distraction of major consequence.

Academic Fraud At Auburn, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

While contemplating the fact that T.O. has claimed he was misquoted in his autobiography, I was bemused by the revelations of what appears to be academic fraud associated with intercollegiate athletics anywhere, but especially when it involves football and Auburn University. I am surprised that anyone would be surprised by such revelations. It was, by the way, an Auburn athlete who first claimed to have been misquoted in his autobiography.

The World Cup, Richard C. Crepeau

On Sport and Society

Now that the World Cup has ended and the red and yellow cards have stopped dropping from the sky, I want to try and make some comments about this world event that seems only marginally relevant to most Americans. I should also preface my remarks by noting that I have not seen every game, have been on the road through much of the event and therefore been somewhat distracted, and most importantly I did not see the final game with its much discussed conclusion.