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UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA NSUKKA

FACULTY OF PHYSICAL SCIENCES
DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS AND ASTRONOMY

TOPIC

PATRIOTISM AND INTERNATIONAL SPORTS FIESTA

A TERM PAPER PRESENTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE COURSE: GSP 101 ( USE OF ENGLISH) BY

ONUOHA RAMSEY CHIBUZOR

REG NO:2013/ LECTURER: MR.W.O UGWUAGBO

MARCH, 2014

TITLE PAGE PATRIOTISM AND INTERNATIONAL SPORTS FIESTA

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DEDICATION

To Almighty God

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I humbly wish to acknowledge my lecturer and all the members of my family for their advice and support in my academic pursuit.

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PREFACE

The write up is divided into four chapters, chapter one is the introduction followed by definition of terms. The focus of chapter two is on patriotic spirit during international sporting fiesta, it focused on players, patriotism, chapter three is an examples of patriotism and international sporting events using Olympic games as an example. While chapter four is the summary and conclusion.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE ..................................................................................................................................................... i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ........................................................................................................................ iii PREFACE .................................................................................................................................................. iv CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................................................... 1 1.0 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 DEFINITION OF TERMS ............................................................................................................................ 2 1.1.1 Sports ........................................................................................................................................... 2 1.1.2 International Sports Fiesta .............................................................................................................. 3 CHAPTER TWO .............................................................................................................................................. 5 PATRIOTISM AND INTERNATIONAL SPORTS FIESTA .................................................................................... 5 2.1 Patriotism In International Sporting Event ......................................................................................... 5 Popular events like the football World Cup and other international sporting occasions are essential in easing international tensions and releasing patriotic emotions in a safe way. .......................................... 5 2.2 Patriotic Emotions During International Sports Fiesta ...................................................................... 6 2.3 Players, patriotism, and politics at the ancient Olympic Games ......................................................... 6 CHAPTER THREE .......................................................................................................................................... 10 EXAMPLES OF INTERNATIONAL SPORTS FIESTA AND PATRIOTISM ............................................................ 11 3.1 Olympics and Patriotic Spirit ................................................................................................................ 11 3.2 Economic and social impact on host cities and countries ................................................................. 12 CHAPTER FOUR ........................................................................................................................................... 14 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION .................................................................................................................... 14 4.1 Summary ............................................................................................................................................... 14 Patriotism has been long been a key factor in international sportsathletes arent just competing for their own satisfaction but for the glory of their country. ........................................................................ 14 4.2 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................................ 15

CHAPTER ONE

1.0 INTRODUCTION

According to Gibson,( 2010). sport is all forms of usually competitive physical activity which through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical ability and skills while providing entertainment to participants, and in some cases, spectators. Hundreds of sports exist, from those requiring only two participants, through to those with hundreds of simultaneous participants, either in teams or competing as individuals. Sport is generally recognised as activities which are based in physical athleticism or physical dexterity, with the largest major competitions such as the Olympic Games admitting only sports meeting this definition, and other organisations such as the Council of Europe using definitions precluding activities without a physical element from classification as sports. However, a number of competitive, but non-physical, activities claim recognition as mind sports. The International Olympic Committee (through ARISF) recognises both chess and bridge as bona fide sports, and SportAccord, the international sports federation association, recognises five non-physical sports, although limits the amount of mind games which can be admitted as sportsSports are usually governed by a set of rules or customs, which serve to ensure fair competition, and allow consistent adjudication of the winner. Winning can be determined by physical events such as scoring goals or crossing a line first, or by the determination of judges

who are scoring elements of the sporting performance, including objective or subjective measures such as technical performance or artistic impression, (Gibson, 2010). "

1.1 DEFINITION OF TERMS

1.1.1 Sports

The precise definition of what separates a sport from other leisure activities varies between sources. The closest to an international agreement on a definition is provided by SportAccord, which is the association for all the largest international sports federations (including association football, athletics, cycling, tennis, equestrian sports and more), and is therefore the de facto representative of international sport.

SportAccord uses the following criteria, determining that a sport should: have an element of competition

be in no way harmful to any living creature not rely on equipment provided by a single supplier (excluding proprietary games such as arena football)

not rely on any "luck" element specifically designed into the sport

They also recognise that sport can be primarily physical (such as rugby or athletics), primarily mind (such as chess or go), predominantly motorised (such as Formula 1 or powerboating), primarily co-ordination (such as billiard sports), or primarily animal-supported (such as equestrian sport). There has been an increase in the application of the term "sport" to a wider set

of non-physical challenges such as electronic sports, especially due to the large scale of participation and organised competition, but these are not widely recognised by mainstream sports organisations.

"Sport" comes from the Old French desport meaning "leisure", with the oldest definition in English from around 1300 being "anything humans find amusing or entertaining".Other meanings include gambling and events staged for the purpose of gambling; hunting; and games and diversions, including ones that require exercise. Roget's defines the noun sport as an "activity engaged in for relaxation and amusement" with synonyms including diversion and recreation.(Buchanon, 2006).

1.1.2 International Sports Fiesta International sports fiesta is defined as a physical activity involving large muscle groups, requiring strategic methods, physical training and mental preparation and whose outcome is determined within a framework, by skill not chance. Sports occur in an organised structured and competitive environment where a winner is declared. 'Mind sports' is defined as a game of mental skill, where training of muscles and skill in controlling them offer insignificant advantage, and mental abilities are paramount. International and regional sports events are defined as events that involve a sporting competition between teams, associations and / or individuals representing at least a minimum of three (3) countries. These events include both sports and mind sport activities. Cultural, Arts and Lifestyle Event Festivals, including music, dance, comedy, fashion, visual arts, multi arts, culinary arts, heritage, ethnic and multicultural performances and commercial music festivals. Performing arts, including theatre, musicals, opera, ballet, classical and contemporary music and cross disciplinary performances. Event

Types International Events An international event: Generates significant direct economic, social, and cultural, benefits to the country. Attracts a significant proportion of international participants and spectators. Has national significance outside of the region in which it is being run. Generates significant international media coverage in markets of interest including. The benefits that can be realised from hosting international events include: Direct benefits such as the creation of additional tourism revenue, new business opportunities, international exposure for country, the enhancement of our reputation as a major events destination, (Charles,2002)

1.2 Definition of Patriotism

Cooper-Chen(2005) defined patriotism as a cultural attachment to one's homeland or devotion to one's country, although interpretations of the term vary with context, geography and philosophy. It is a related sentiment to nationalism. Patriotism may be strengthened by adherence to a national religion (a civil religion or even a theocracy). This is the opposite of the separation of church and state demanded by the Enlightenment thinkers who saw patriotism and faith as similar and opposed forces. Michael Billig and Jean Bethke Elshtain have both argued that the difference between patriotism and faith is difficult to discern and relies largely on the attitude of the one doing the labelling

CHAPTER TWO

PATRIOTISM AND INTERNATIONAL SPORTS FIESTA

2.1 Patriotism In International Sporting Event Popular events like the football World Cup and other international sporting occasions are essential in easing international tensions and releasing patriotic emotions in a safe way. Popular events like the football World Cup and other international sporting occasions are essential in easing international tensions and releasing patriotic emotions in a safe way. Patriotism is something that involves patriotic emotions, feeling and actions of people who love his native land and are proud of it. Even though it is considered as a positive feature, sometimes it causes to negative situations such as arguing, discorting among residents of different countries. Nowadays the solution of this problem is the subject of discussion, for example, some people think that worldwide events like the football World Cup, Olympic Games and other international sporting occasions are essential in easing international tensions and releasing patriotic emotions in a safe way. I totally agree with this statement but before drawing a quick conclusion, it needs to be discussed.( Paul ,2002)

2.2 Patriotic Emotions During International Sports Fiesta In my opinion, the major function of international events is to assemble people from different countries with various nationalty all over the world in one place for racing. In such famous competitons the winners are always estimated for their personal qualities such as strength, force or other abilities, not depending on their nationality. For instance, sportsmen from the enemy countries forget their national problems with each other and concentrate only on competition and to my mind, this way is absoluetly effective for releasing patriotic emotions and make stable atmosphere. Although the number of the pros of international competitions is remarkebly more, it is an undeniable fact that sometimes there can be some qwarrels, most times among the fans of different teams. (Eassom, 1994)..

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2.3 Players, patriotism, and politics at the ancient Olympic Games Patriotism has been long been a key factor in international sportsathletes arent just competing for their own satisfaction but for the glory of their country. And this uneasy relationship isnt just a modern affair, politics has had a huge role in sports since the ancient Olympic Games. For starters, you think its the taking part that counts, rather than the winning? Well, in ancient Greece even just turning up was politically influential. The ruling classes of Greek cities sought to attend the major athletic contests not only to watch the games, but also to engage in

politics at a personal or state level. The attendance, and above all the wealth, of each citys official delegation served as propaganda for community identity and interstate rivalry.

For example, after his election as general in Athens, prominent Athenian statesman Alcibiades attended the 416 bce Olympic Games with the richest delegation so far. He also rented seven charioteers and entered all his seven quadrigas in the chariot race of the Olympic Games, winning the three first prizes and breaking the Spartan domination of the event. A few months later, Alcibiades exploited his Olympic victories politically in the Athenian popular assembly to gain support for his views in favour of the expedition against the powerful city of Syracuse in Sicily.

There were also cases, however, in which a resplendent official representation achieved exactly the opposite of what it was intended to do. In seeking to increase his fame among all the Greeks, the tyrant of Syracuse, Dionysius I, sent a brilliant delegation to Olympia, including rhapsodes to give public readings of his poems in order to win glory as a poet. At first, this glamorous presence aroused the curiosity and admiration of the spectators. But as soon as the rhapsodes began to read Dionysiuss very bad poetry, the audience began to laugh and mock him. The Athenian orator Lysias urged the crowd not to accept the emissaries of a tyrant, whereupon many of the spectators drove the Syracusans from Olympia.

Another very powerful means of exercising political influence at the Olympic Games was via the emergence of victors. This need, however, often led ancient cities to use methods that were not entirely legitimate.

The athletes from Croton, a Greek colony in southern Italy, won twelve victories out of twenty-seven Olympiads in the most important contest, the speed race. Modern scholars have tried to interpret this phenomenon as manufacturing winners by using advanced diet and training methods, like East Germany in the modern period. Others, however, see strong circumstantial evidence that these Western Greeks recruited athletes from other cities and paid them handsomely, (Eassom, 1994)..

The great desire for victory occasionally led the athletes themselves to indulge in illegitimate practices. In 332 bce, the pentathlete Callippus was caught bribing his opponents. The Athenians, refusing to pay the exorbitant fine, reacted by using a measure that resembles events at the modern Olympiads of Moscow and Los Angeles: they threatened to boycott the games and not send any athletes. The games also played an important political role in the recognition of Greekness, since only Greeks originally had the right to take part. For example, at the beginning of the fifth century, King Alexander I of Macedonia decided to take part in the Olympic Games. Some of his rivals sought to exclude him, arguing that only Greek athletes, not barbarians, were allowed to enter. Alexander was able to prove that he was Greek through tracing his genealogy back to Heracles, and was allowed to participate. This was of great political significance, since this instance was the first time that Macedonia was accepted as part of the Greek world. Now that Macedonia was established as part of Greece, Alexander the Great set about disseminating Greek culture by starting athletic contests in all the lands he conquered.

The Romans, on the other hand, looked upon athletic contests, with the exception of chariot races, as an inferior activity. Several emperors supported the games, however, realising that one of the best ways to control the various peoples in their vast empire was develop existing institutions of a cohesive character.

In 212 bce, for example, Roman citizenship was granted to all inhabitants of the empire. This meant that all the great athletes of the Mediterranean acquired the right to compete at the Olympics, investing the games with a new, very important value: ecumenism.

As you can see, the Olympic Games have had an intense political character throughout their 1200 year long history. After all, there is a reason the games is the longest living institution of civilization in the history of mankind! Solidarity, fair play, and globalism these utopian buzzwords are closely associated with the Olympic games and the Olympic spirit that the games seek to uphold. The Olympic Charter even defines the games as competitions between individuals and team events and not between countries the goal is to celebrate athletic excellence, not to stroke national egos. But, like it or not, the Olympics have long been a catalyst for intense patriotism, particularly when viewed through the lens of national media coverage. Is this patriotism in media coverage compatible with or antithetical to the purpose of the Olympics? (Wade, 2007). "

Last week, the sports news website Deadspin published an article analyzing NBCs Tuesday night Olympic coverage they found that the United States accounted for 46.5% of all participant mentions during the broadcast. The United States only won two of the 24 medals

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handed out on Tuesday and none of the gold medals, yet NBC chose to devote nearly half of its coverage that day to American athletes. In a follow up article on Thursday Deadspin reported similar trends in CBC coverage of Canadian athletes and BBC coverage of British competitors. This nationalistic media focus makes a lot of sense on a commercial level patriotism sells. Successful Olympic athletes often become celebrities in their home countries and bankable stars for commentators to focus on. NBC is strategic to center their Olympic reporting on Shani Davis and Sean White names that are far more recognizable to American viewers than the Netherlands Stefan Groothuis and Switzerlands Iouri Podladtchikov, despite the fact that Groothuis and Podladtchikov beat Davis and White to the gold in Sochi. Most Olympic viewers want to see and hear about athletes from their own countries, particularly when they come from countries with a large delegations competing in the games like Canada, the United States, and Russia in the Sochi Olympics. It can be argued that nationalistic Olympic reporting is simply giving viewers what they want. (Findling ,2004)

CHAPTER THREE

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EXAMPLES OF INTERNATIONAL SPORTS FIESTA AND PATRIOTISM

3.1 Olympics and Patriotic Spirit

The Olympics are a bit of a sports peculiarity in that they are comprised of sports oddities. Think about it; when was the last time you watched a swim meet, amateur wrestling or gymnastics? Unless youre the parent of a high school student, your answer is probably the last time the Olympics were on. And those arent even close to the most esoteric competitions curling, a sport widely mocked by most everyone who isnt Canadian, is an Olympic sport. But when it comes to the Olympics, we watch anyway.What makes us tune in to watch sports we dont ordinarily give a moments thought? In a word, patriotism. Well, vicarious patriotism. We dont really care about what the competition is, we just know we want to win. We want the glory, even if it isnt ours. We want that vicarious thrill of victory and superiority that can only come from sitting on a couch watching people we dont know try to beat other people we dont know at some sport weve heard of twice in our lives. We feel that way about almost all sports, but the Olympics magnifies this beyond any other sporting event, except the World Cup.

In a sense, the Olympics are a substitute for other forms of international conflict, or at least another form of it. The United States never engaged in warfare with the Soviet Union, but vigorously competed against them in the Olympics. Theres a reason the Miracle on Ice is so famous, and its not just because the United States were substantial underdogs. Girginov, 2005)

But at the same time, the Olympics are not war or a battle for economic superiority. They dont have real consequences. Its a form of conflict we can invest ourselves in, knowing that

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the worst thing that could happen isnt really so bad. When we win, we can say we won something that epitomizes the human spirit and the resiliency of our nation. When we lose, we can brush it off by saying its just sports. Today, with egregious political divides, increasing inequality, and international uncertainty as a result of the economic crisis, it wont hurt to take a little time and distract ourselves with something that has the potential to lift spirits, not dash them. (Schaffer, 2000).

This is why we watch the Olympics. Its why a man deadlifting 1,000 pounds with the aid of unpronounceable drugs that are 14 syllables long and wont be detectable for another five years, is suddenly the measure of that mans character and the strength of his country; not just a rather absurd and relatively uninteresting spectacle. And I think thats great.

3.2 Economic and social impact on host cities and countries

Many economists are skeptical about the economic benefits of hosting the Olympic Games, emphasizing that such "mega-events" often have large costs while yielding relatively few tangible benefits in the long run. Conversely hosting (or even bidding for) the Olympics appears to increase the host country's exports, as the host or candidate country sends a signal about trade openness when bidding to host the Games Moreover, research suggests that hosting the Summer Olympics has a strong positive effect on the philanthropic contributions of corporations headquartered in the host city, which seems to benefit the local nonprofit sector. This positive effect begins in the years leading up to the Games and might persist for several years afterwards,

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although not permanently. This finding suggests that hosting the Olympics might create opportunities for cities to influence local corporations in ways that benefit the local nonprofit sector and civil society. The Games have also had significant negative effects on host communities; for example, the Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions reports that the Olympics displaced more than two million people over two decades, often disproportionately affecting disadvantaged groups. The 2014 Winter Games in Sochi were the most expensive Olympic Games in history, costing in excess of $50 billion. (Rose, 2011)

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CHAPTER FOUR

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

4.1 Summary Patriotism has been long been a key factor in international sportsathletes arent just competing for their own satisfaction but for the glory of their country. Popular events like the football World Cup and other international sporting occasions are essential in easing international tensions and releasing patriotic emotions in a safe way. Patriotism is something that involves patriotic emotions, feeling and actions of people who love his native land and are proud of it.. In my opinion, the major function of international events is to assemble people from different countries with various nationalty all over the world in one place for racing. In such famous competitons the winners are always estimated for their personal qualities such as strength, force or other abilities, not depending on their nationality..

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4.2 Conclusion

International sports fiesta offer something unique amongst major sporting events - the opportunity to celebrate human sporting achievement on a global level. Fans of franchise and college sports teams are often too wrapped up in the success and failure of their own team to appreciate the athleticism and talent of their rivals. The Olympics are a rare chance to rise above these biases and celebrate athletic achievement across domestic and international boundaries.

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REFERENCES
Gibson, Owen ( 2010). "Sainsbury's announces sponsorship of 2012 Paralympics". The Guardian (London). Buchanon, Ian; Mallon, Bill (2006). Historical Dictionary of the Olympic Movement. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press Charles Blatberg, From Pluralist to Patriotic Politics: Putting Practice First, Oxford University Press, 2000.

Cooper-Chen, Anne (2005). Global entertainment media. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Eassom, Simon (1994). Critical Reflections on Olympic Ideology. Ontario: The Centre for Olympic Studies. Findling, John E.; Pelle, Kimberly D. (2004). Encyclopedia of the Modern Olympic Movement. Westport CT: Greenwood Press.. Girginov, Vassil; Parry, Jim (2005). The Olympic Games Explained: A Student Guide to the Evolution of the Modern Olympic Games. Routledge. Paul Gomberg,(2002) Patriotism is Like Racism, in Igor Primoratz, ed., Patriotism, Humanity Books, 2002, pp. 105112. Rose, A. K., & Spiegel, M. M. (2011). The Olympic Effect*. The Economic Journal, 121(553), 652677. Schaffer, Kay; Smith, Sidonie (2000). Olympics at the Millennium. New Jersey: Rutgers University Press. Wade, Stephen (2007). "No kidding: Teens to get Youth Olympic Games". USA Today.

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Igor Primoratz, ed., Patriotism, Humanity Books, 2002. ISBN 1-57392-955-7. Daniel Bar-Tal and Ervin Staub, Patriotism, Wadsworth Publishing, 1999. ISBN 0-8304-1410-X. Maurizio Viroli, For Love of Country: An Essay on Patriotism and Nationalism, Oxford University Press, 1997.

References[edit]

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