Use of banned substances and doping to enhance performance to gain an edge over rivals. Employing tools like a sandpaper to rub on a cricket ball to make its swing more pronounced, thereby making batting more difficult. Accepting money for spot-fixing or even fixing the outcome of a game. If you think about what links all these different things, it is the fact that these are all forms of cheating prevalent in sports, even at the elite level.
The mentality of winning at all costs through your own performance is a good one to have, both individually and as a team. But when that same mentality pushes you to the brink and makes you adopt malpractices, then it is definitely wrong.
Even though there are checks and balances already in place in most elite sports, this hasn’t been enough. Be it bans that prevent participation for a fixed number of years or even a lifetime, it still hasn’t proven to be foolproof.
The allure of winning at the greatest of stages is one that might push even the best-intentioned to wrongdoings. It is therefore important to educate from a very young age on the importance of playing clean, regardless of what sport it is.
The reputation of professional cycling as a sport was battered when the repeated doping offences of U.S. cyclist Lance Armstrong, once considered an icon in the sport, was proved beyond doubt. Here, a 30-foot effigy of the disgraced American cyclist burns during Bonfire Night celebrations in Edenbridge, south east England in November 2012.
Most elite athletes grow up spending countless hours in their chosen field, losing out on other standard rounded education that most of us undergo. This does come at a cost at times, as implications of a wrong move might not be fully understood before it is done. Apart from ruining their own reputation, that of the sport in which they are involved also takes a huge beating when an individual or a team resorts to cheating to gain an advantage.
What we can do is to keep driving at the message that victory is worthy only if it is attained in the right way. By playing it clean, irrespective of the level at which you are playing the sport, you display gamesmanship that is often remembered, even if in a losing cause. Victories are important, yes. But only when it is attained without bending the rules.
Nurture the young stars
Despite our burgeoning reputation as a powerhouse in a number of sports, India as a country is still lacking and lagging in many others. While the lack of skill might be a reason, it doesn’t paint the complete picture.
It is hard to accept that for a country of our size and population, we do not have enough competing at the highest level in many sports. We can make progress in this if we are able to identify talent at a young age and groom them.
In India, there is sometimes a strong emphasis on education, even if it is at the cost of other skills. Without the right backing, many youngsters talented in sports and arts have had to stick to academics. Within sports too, the focus has been in a few select ones, like cricket.
By widening our view as a society, we can make steady improvement. If you are good in a sport and wish to pursue it, you are bound to do better if you feel encouraged to do it. When this goes along with the financial and infrastructural backing of the government and the corporates, then chances are that a new star will be born!
Picture Credit : Google
Hollywood is situated in the north-west of Los Angeles, California. It has been the centre of the American film industry. It has an ideal sunny climate and a varied terrain – most suited for film industry.
As old as Roman times, Spanish wild bulls were hunted by men with axes and lances who played with the beasts before killing them. The concept of bull fighting thus originated from those ancient ages.
Pop songs have been a craze with the youngsters over the past few decades. Its ever increasing mass popularity has produced a breed of pop stars at different times who have entertained the music lovers in their own distinct styles. Elvis Presley was one of the first ‘pop’ stars – a rock ‘n’ roll singer whose appearance on stage could create a rage among the audience. Rock ‘n’ Roll was a form of dancing and the singers danced to the rhythmic beat of their music. Presley’s popularity was at the peak in the 1950s and 1960s with hits like ‘Blue Suede Shoes’, ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ and ‘His latest Flame’.
The art of painting is as old as the human civilization. It is considered as one of the most creative form of all arts. During different periods of history, different styles of painting were evolved and each type had its own breed of great painters. Impressionism is one such style of painting which was first used by some French artists in the 1870s’. All paintings of this type give an impression of something, not an exact picture of it.
The Duke of Beaufort started the game of badminton on his estate in Gloucestershire. On one wet day in 1873, when the Duke wanted to entertain his guests, he improvised the game by placing a string in between to hit shuttle cocks over it. The guests were very delighted with this game, and they began to circulate it. In the beginning it was known as the ‘game from Badminton’ and later on Badminton became its official name.
Pentathlon is a five part competition for athletes involving five different events. The name pentathlon has come from two Greek words: pente meaning five and athlon meaning contest. In pentathlon each participant must take part in all the five different events. The one who has the highest aggregate score is selected as the winner.
This is one of several games played with a small hard ball known as pelota. This is the fastest ball game. The fastest pelota game is known in Spanish as Pelota vasca meaning Basque pelota. The Basque name is Jai Alai or ‘merry festival’. Jai Alai may have begun in 13th century Italy. In fact pelota is a Spanish game and pelota means ball.
The game of billiards is so old that no one can say when it began. There are some authorities who claim that it was played in ancient Egypt. The Greeks knew the game as long ago as 400 B.C.
Surfing is an exciting water sport in which the sportsmen ride ocean waves on a long, narrow surfboard. When Captain James Cook discovered Hawaii in 1788, he found that it was already a very popular sport among the Hawaiians.
Football is one of the most popular games in the world; the best football player may logically be regarded as the most celebrated one. Pele has been one of the best football players of the world. According to a French newspaper, Pele, in an informal poll, was voted to be the best player of the century.
Skating probably originated in Scandinavia about 2,000 years ago when skaters used blades made of bone which were shaped and polished untill them provided a flat gliding surface. Then they were bound to the feet with thongs. The word “skate” originated from a Dutch word Schaats that dates back to the 16th century. Gradually skating branched itself into different forms and now it is played either on ice or on a level floor, by means of ice-skates or roller-skates attached to the skater’s boots. Ice-skates have a steel blade and roller-skates have four wheels each.
Today people play many games of cards all over the world. Bridge is an international game of cards. In addition to this, people in every country play various other games of cards. Card playing is an indoor game. Do you know how this game was started?
Chess is regarded as a game of the kings. Probably this is the oldest game. Some people are of the opinion that this game was started some 5,000 years ago. The word ‘chess’ finds its origin in the Persian word ‘Shah’ which means ‘King’. This gives the impression that chess was started in Persia, but this is not true.
Kabuki is a lyric music of Japan. Like most of the other narrative forms, it began with a close relation to the Kabuki popular theatre of the Edo period. The Eastern part of the present capital city of Tokyo was originally called Edo. The Edo period refers to the dynasty founded by Tokugu wa Ilyasu – a local warrior during 16th century. The word “Kabuki” means the art of singing and dancing.
Mickey Mouse was the brain child of the famous American motion picture producer Walter Elivas Disney. He was very fond of making cartoon films and also became a successful animator. Mickey Mouse was introduced by him in 1928 in his silent cartoon film Plane Crazy. The first talkie (sound film) presenting Mickey Mouse was Steambout Willie made in 1929 by Disney. Thereafter it remained one of the most important characters in Walt Disney’s stock company of animated figures. The character was always drawn by Ub lwerks, one of Disney’s indispensable co-workers. The voice of Mickey in the films was the voice of Disney himself. Disney won a special Academy award in 1931-32 for creating Mickey Mouse. 
Disney was born in Chicago on December 5, 1901. He started producing advertising films in Kansas City in 1919 and then turned to animation but only with limited success. Later he moved to Hollywood where he and his brother Roy become partners. When the first sound track movie featuring Mickey Mouse (Steambout Willie) was made in 1928, the character as well as its creator became instantly famous all over the world. Walt Disney also produced animated feature films like Snow white and the Seven dwarfs (1937), Fantasia (1940), Pinocchio (1938) etc. When the cost of making animated films became prohibitive, he ventured into true life adventure films such as Seal Island (1948), Beaver Valley (1950) etc. Later he made live action family films that include Davy Crocklet (1955), Mary Poppins (1965) etc.
Music has been a main component of our culture since times immemorial. Generation after generation, people have enjoyed and experienced different forms and varieties of music. As a consequence every period of history has produced its own breed of musicians but only a few could make a lasting impact in the minds and hearts of people. Mozart was one such product of the 18th century music and went on to become one of the most brilliant composers in the history of music. His great genius was his ability to compose every form of music that included operas, choral, orchestral, and chamber music.
The people of Japan always keep a keen interest in their old customs and traditions. The case of Japanese sport lovers is no exception. Traditional games of the past awaken their curiosity and enthusiasm. Every traditional sport in Japan has been ritualized. Participants mostly follow a strict code which results in quality and artistic performance of the games.