Education for the Aesthetics of Sport in Higher Education in the Sports Sciences – The Particular Case of the Portuguese-Speaking Countries

In this paper it is argued why and how the aesthetics of sport should be included in higher education curricula in sport sciences. It is claimed that within the scope of philosophy of sport, aesthetics has its own role to play, since it provides a ‘sensible knowledge’ that should not be undervalued, and philosophers of sport must be aware of this. Providing examples from Portugal and Brazil, it is enunciated how these countries have been taking seriously and incorporated (if only partially) inquiry and education concerning the aesthetics of sport. Through an interpretative analysis, it is argued about the adoption of the aesthetics of sport in academic curricula and also in the syllabus of sport philosophy and aesthetics of sport courses in the context of higher education in the Faculty of Sport at the University of Porto.     

The History of the South East Asian Peninsular Games,1959–1975

After the Second World War the Southeast Asian countries of Burma (1948), Laos (1954), Cambodia (1955), South Vietnam (1955), Malaya (1957), and Singapore (1959) sought independence from the British, French and Japanese colonialists. The first post Second World War and post-colonial biannual multisport Southeast Asian Games was held in Bangkok in 1959 among these countries (and Thailand) although they were relatively poor developing countries. Referring to official reports of the eight bi-annual SEAP Games and other sources of information this research studies how the organization of the eight SEAP Games since 1959 contributed to the nation building process of each country and shaped the political landscape. This was carried out by creating a national identity through sports in each country as well as creating a sense of regional cooperation during periods of war, shifting boundaries and identities. This was done through rituals to legitimize newly ascended constitutional monarchies and heads of states, national flags and athletes' national identity during competition. The SEAP Games also gradually opened avenues for women's participation similar to female athletes in the Olympic Games. It also provided opportunities for promising athletes to shine, improve and compete at higher levels at the Asian and Olympic Games.     

Foucault’s History of the Present: The Birth of the Games Concept Approach in Singapore’s Physical Education Curriculum

Abstract

The year 1999 saw a major shift in Singapore’s Physical Education curriculum when the traditional teaching approach in primary schools was replaced by a more game-like one, aptly known as the Games Concept Approach (GCA). Based on Foucault’s ‘History of the Present’ which intended to distinguish the kind of historical projects that brought this change, the focus is on tracing the forces that gave birth to the present-day practices and identifying the historical conditions which caused this shift towards GCA. Inspired by Foucault’s distinct elements of status, institutional sites and situation, the perspective of revealing a ‘history of the present’ on the birth of GCA in Singapore creates a better understanding of why it is still being taught in the PE curriculum.     

Gaelic Games,Irish Nationalist Politics and the Irish Diaspora in London, 1895–1915

This article makes an original contribution to the growing historiography on the role of sport, and more specifically, Gaelic games amongst Irish immigrant communities around the world. It does so by shedding light on the origins and early history of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) in late nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century London. In particular, the article explores the ways in which membership of this organisation allowed sections of the city's Irish population to preserve and express their ethnic specificity and support for Irish nationalism. This reveals that Gaelic games were drawn on by a diverse range of organisations and individuals who sought to utilise these sports to galvanise support for varying shades of Irish nationalism.     

The National Games and National Identity in the Republic of China, 1910–1948

The significance of sport, especially mega sport events, has been widely acknowledged as contributing to the development of nationalism and national identity.1^?1. Alan Bairner, Sport, Nationalism and Globalization: European and North American Perspectives (New York: Suny Press, 2001). The use of the National Games by the nationalist government to promote Chinese nationalism and manage national identity in the Republic of China from 1910 to 1948 is examined in this paper. It begins with an interpretation of how Western sport was introduced to China, how China achieved its sovereignty of sport and how sport aided national salvation and nation-building. It examines the birth and the development of Chinese National Games, and the interplays of National Games and nationalism in the context of political and economic perspectives. It concludes that the promotion of National Games met the demands of China's national salvation and the principles of Chinese nationalism such as sovereignty, territorial integrity and patriotic sentiments. The National Games in the Republican China era played a role that was more than that of a sport event but one of shaping Chinese independent nationhood and national identity.     

Emigrants at Play: Gaelic Games and the Irish Diaspora in Chicago, 1884–c.1900

This article uncovers the origins and early history of Gaelic games in late-nineteenth-century Chicago and examines the ways in which membership of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) allowed sections of the city's Irish population to preserve and express their ethnic specificity and support for Irish nationalism. In doing so, it adds to the author's earlier research which has begun to redress the neglect of Gaelic sport in the broader historiography of the Irish in America.     

A Bird’s-Eye View of the Past: Digital History,Distant Reading and Sport History

Advances in computer technologies have made it easier than ever before for historians to access a wealth of sources made available in the digital era. This article investigates one way that historians have engaged with the challenges and opportunities of this ‘infinite archive’: distant reading. We define distant reading as an umbrella term that embraces many practices, including data mining, aggregation, text analysis, and the visual representations of these practices. This paper investigates the utility of distant reading as a research tool via three newspaper case studies concerning Muhammad Ali, women’s surfing in Australia, and homophobic language and Australian sport. The research reveals that the usefulness, effectiveness, and success of distant reading is dependent on numerous factors. While valuable in many instances, distant reading is rarely an end in itself and can be most powerful when paired with the traditional historical skills of close reading.     

The 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm – The First Meeting of the Highly Trusted Men and What Happened to Them Since

At the Olympic Games in Stockholm in 1912, Johannes Sigfrid Edström, Avery Brundage, Carl Diem and Karl Ritter von Halt met each other for the first time and started to cooperate afterwards. From the 1930s they all played a very important role in IOC and in the Olympic System (I prefer system instead of movement). The article examines the role of the network in the international discussion about the Olympic Games in Berlin in 1936, the networks perceptions of the Jews and their cooperation with the Nazis, the networks importance for the denazification of Karl Ritter von Halt after the Second World War and the influence in IOC to West Germany and East Germany during the Cold War until the 1972 Olympics when East Germany participated for the first time as a sovereign state and Avery Brundage resigned as president of the IOC.     

The Joinville School and the Institutionalization of a French-Style Physical Education, 1852–1939

Since the mid-nineteenth century, the Joinville School in France has worked to promote an innovative method of physical education, the French method, which was strongly marked by ideological and geopolitical challenges. Most of the French actors, whether they be military, doctors, scientists, or teachers, fought to defend France on the move. Physical education and its scholastic responsibility thus represented an original means to serve the national community and to give the country the necessary influence it required on the political and cultural international scene. If during the Second Empire, the Joinville School participated in the development of the physical instruction of French troops, during the third Republic, this officers' training school expanded the promotion of its method for physical education in schools. Among the challenges of this strategy, the actors for French physical education were faced with the organization of a common national teaching method as additional support for the promotion of a method that bore the mark of an eclectic philosophy. Until World War II, the Joinville School was a center for innovation that would spread practical physical education throughout France and Europe.     

Guangzhou: The Asian Games and the Chinese ‘Gold-Fest’ – Geopolitical Issues for Australia

At the Guangzhou Asian Games, the performances of China's athletes, the officials and the host city of Guangzhou were outstanding. China's journey to the Asian Games in Guangzhou and the accompanying political and sporting machinations throughout are considered in the initial discussion of this essay. The analysis subsequently focuses on Australia's metamorphosis as an ‘Asian’ nation and the sporting, cultural and diplomatic implications this could have for Australia and China. Would this signal Australia's egress from the Commonwealth Games and the Commonwealth per se, thus cutting the British Imperial umbilicus? The presence of Australia at the Asian Games may also enhance the soft power ambitions China has for its engagement in the Asian Games; succeeding in competitions that include a global sports ‘heavyweight’ like Australia would add kudos to the performances of Chinese athletes. How would Australia benefit from this shift? Considering Australia's geopolitical and economic ties with East Asia would an increased level of sporting engagement with China concomitantly produce cultural, economic and political successes? In the long term, Australia may inevitably become part of the post-colonial East Asian world: the future world of power, wealth and geopolitical influence.     

The Development of Gaelic football and Soccer Zones in County Donegal, 1884–1934

This article examines the geography of Gaelic and Association football zones in Donegal between 1884 and 1934. It will illustrate where these sports were initially played and will show how, by the early twentieth century, soccer was the number one team game in the county. With the decline of competitive soccer in Donegal after 1915, a vacuum existed for the organisation of competitive structures for Gaelic football and the Donegal Gaelic Athletic Association county board was refounded in 1919, having run initially from 1905–1907. County championships were soon organised and these provided a competitive form of football on a regular basis as players could adapt to each code fairly easily. However, many local sports organisers in the north-east of the county were eager to continue with soccer and it was through the organisation of local leagues and cup competitions that they managed to do this. A deep tradition of soccer and strong connections with Derry city and Scotland also meant that association football received priority there. In contrast, by 1934, Gaelic football had become firmly entrenched in the south and south-west. The importance of local organisers within the county and the failure of both the Irish Football Association and the Football Association of the Irish Free State to develop soccer in this peripheral area will also be outlined.     

The Gaelic Athletic Association's Invasion of America, 1888: Travel Narratives,Microhistory and the Irish American ‘Other’

This article explores a little-known event in Irish and American sports history, namely a tour made by the Gaelic Athletic Association to North America in 1888. The article focuses on a newspaper diary kept of the tour by Joseph Whelan, and published in the Irish newspaper Sport. In analysing Whelan's comments, the article seeks to understand how such material can be used to create a microhistory of a specific event such as a sporting tour, and discusses how far the methodology of microhistory can be useful to sports historians. The commentary of Whelan also allows for an exploration of travel narrative. This is a key point with respect to the late-nineteenth-century Irish, as Whelan is a tourist who will return home, rather than an immigrant moving permanently to Ireland. The history of Irish America, and the question of the Irish as 'other', has been dominated by the archives of the immigrant. What the material from the tour allows is an Irish view of America as tourist as opposed to settler. This raises significant questions for the existing historiography of Irish America. In conclusion the article argues that travel narratives of sporting events – tours, tournaments and mega-events – can allow us to approach the history of sport from a fresh angle.     

The Legacy of the Games of the New Emerging Forces and Indonesia’s Relationship with the International Olympic Committee

Abstract

The Games of the New Emerging Forces (GANEFO) often serve as an example of the entanglement of sport, Cold War politics and the Non-Aligned Movement in the 1960s. Indonesia as the initiator plays a salient role in the research on this challenge for the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The legacy of GANEFO and Indonesia’s further relationship with the IOC, however, has not yet drawn proper academic attention. This paper analyzes Indonesia’s interactions with the IOC until the present time, with a focus on the country’s involvement in sporting events under the patronage of the IOC (such as the Asian and Southeast Asian Games). In addition, two case studies demonstrate the variable relationship between the two actors. First, Indonesia only narrowly escaped sanctions over a dispute on the use of the Olympic logo in 2015. Yet, the country is named as host of the 2018 Asian Games, hence showing high ambitions to re-enter the international sports arena. These incidents illustrate the significance of conformity of local agencies towards the IOC with regard to political positions and power structures. The study opens the field to local – Asian – perspectives on interactions with the IOC.     

‘The Event That Shook the Whole World Up’: Historicizing the 1983 Pan-American Games Doping Scandal

Abstract

In August of 1983 at the Pan-American Games in Caracas, Venezuela, a multi-faceted doping crisis occurred that overshadowed all other aspects of the games. This essay marks the first attempt to historicize the events surrounding this watershed moment in the fight against drug use in sport. Doping was revealed in three ways in Caracas: by the large number of positive tests that resulted in the first loss to doping of medals in the history of the Pan-American Games, by the exodus of the 12 American track and field athletes who flew home rather than be subject to testing in the sophisticated lab run by Dr Manfred Donike, and by a rash of ‘injuries’ and unexpectedly poor performances that kept athletes out of the medals and thus out of Donike’s lab. In the aftermath of the games, the United States Olympic Committee implemented new policies to ensure that Americans competing in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games would not run the risk of similar public embarrassment.     

Rhodesia and the Olympic Games: representations of masculinity,war and Empire, 1965–1980

White-settler-ruled Rhodesia faced isolation from international sporting competition after its unilateral declaration of independence in 1965, including from the Olympic Games. Sport reflected the qualities of white Rhodesian society, including its gendered and racialized norms. Rhodesia inherited its sporting ethic from Great Britain, and the British influence on Rhodesian sport remained indelible even as anti-British sentiment flared in the white community as Britain worked to exclude Rhodesia from international sport. This work highlights the irony that Rhodesia adhered to Imperial British social norms on the playing field while trying to assert an independent and anti-British national identity.     

The Statistics and Analysis of the Age Structure of Men＇s Basketball Players in the 11th National Games

运用文献资料和数理统计等方法,对参加第十一届全运会男篮决赛阶段144名运动员的年龄结构、攻守效能进行统计分析。结果表明：运动员年龄结构极不合理,比例失调,22岁以下运动员占总数的53.5%,29岁以上运动员仅占总人数的12.5%;运动员平均每场上场时间分别为23～28岁年龄段21min2s、29岁以上17min54s、22岁以下14min19s,三者差距明显。     

Lacrosse History,a History of One Sport or Two? A Comparative Analysis of Men's Lacrosse and Women's Lacrosse in the United States

Men's lacrosse and women's lacrosse share a name, but their histories differ. Both sports developed and became organised in close concert with the race, class and gender expectations of the eras. As a result, the sports began with rules that reflected those norms. Over time, the sports developed separately and generated unique forms, even as they sustained moments of interaction. Therefore, men's lacrosse and women's lacrosse are different sports. Using comparisons as the mode through which to view the sports, this article explores the organised beginnings of men's lacrosse and women's lacrosse to establish that the sports began and continued within identity-based norms. Through the discussion of the practical distinctions and critical understandings of the differences between the games, the author poses that these dissimilarities are relevant in considerations of the separate sports as they continue to change in the larger US sporting context. As sports such as basketball demonstrate, these arguments matter because broad-scale comparisons of women's sports to men's frequently render women's sport participants, and the sports they play, inferior. Notably, women's lacrosse participants also employed comparisons to distinguish and claim their history as unique from that of men's lacrosse. A comparative analysis highlights points of disjuncture between the sports and contextualises the importance of gender in the articulations of difference.