Deviance Within Sports

Deviance has become very prominent in all sports. I think the major problem is that the best players are the ones who get the most attention, and to be the best people are willing to do whatever it takes. No one cares about the guy who worked his butt off every practice but just never performed at a high level, people want to see unbelievable plays, and people want to see the impossible occur. I think that is why in baseball in particular, steroids became so prominent. It became almost boring to watch...until Mark and Sammy began killing balls, hit homers left and right, and all of sudden baseball was the most entertaining thing to watch. So what does the next average guy do? Well he realizes these guys aren’t natural so he starts juicing, before you know it Bonds is breaking homerun records and everyone appears to follow their lead. Before any of us realized it appeared everyone was taking steroids...but at the end of the day it was our fascination in their perceived ability that made them want to become better. It was no longer about personal growth. It was about giving people what they wanted to see, because if fans are happy, your paycheck is going to be smiling to. But everyone wants to be the best, because the best gets the most attention and makes the most money. That is just the way it is...so why do we judge people for trying to become the best? We are the one's putting them on this pedestal, yet at the same time frown upon their wrongdoing, even though it was obvious from the get go that people such as Barry Bonds just randomly put on 50lbs of muscle of but we had no idea until the tests came back positve. No, it's called being naive and ignorant, we want to the best and support them and pretend like they are doing things, the "right" way.

-Erik Kalfus 

   Kin 332I T/Th 12-145

Oscar Pistorius in the Olympics.

This post is about Oscar Pistorius, a double amputee runner who participated in the 400 m and 4 x 400 meter relay race.  Oscar is the first amputee runner to take part in the Olympics other than the Paralympics.  What makes Oscar such a special case is his incredible ability to run, however, many feel that his prosthetic legs give him an advantage over other runners.  Earlier in his running career, there was a ban on his prosthetic by the International Association of Athletics Federation in 2007.  After a successful appeal, he was able to compete in competitions again.  Swimuit Illustrated did a lengthy article about Oscar and his prosthetic legs.  To summarize the article, it brought in eight physiologist and biomechanics experts who had no affiliation in Oscars testing to judge his legs and their advantage/disadvantage.  The decision was split between four believing his legs were and advantage, and the other four saying there were more disadvantages to his legs than there are benefits.  I honestly feel like he does have an advantage.  However, this doesn't mean to say that he is a bad athlete or he doesn't deserve to compete in races.  Only time and research will show whether he is at and advantage or disadvantage.  Until that time, i will continue to enjoy watching his races with other competitors.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/olympics/2012/writers/david_epstein/08/03/oscar-pistorius-london-olympics/index.html

-Vince Dinh
Kin 332I (T/TH 2:00)

Performance Enhancement Film

Last week in class we watched part of the film "Bigger, Stronger, Faster". It was about how performance enhancing anabolic steroids are conceived in in sport culture as well as in American society. The film captured my interest because I have always assumed that anabolic steroids were an adversary to any user. Sure, you could be a spectacular athlete, but the negative affects of steroids far outweighed the benefits in my eyes. I have always been told that drugs in general are essentially bad for anyone to use. Anabolic steroids have always fallen into that category. According to the film, most of the negative side effects from anabolic steroids are only recognized in a small percentage of the user population. So why is it that in modern American society that performance enhancement is frowned upon? Just like the film portrayed, anabolic steroids are the antagonist secret weapon while the hero (usually portrayed patriotically) relies on work ethic and determination. The WWE and Rocky movies are a prime examples of hypocrisy when it comes to the message being delivered and the truth behind those gigantic biceps. After watching the film, I felt that both sides of the issue were addressed equally. As for my opinion on the use of anabolic steroids in sports, I think I still need to do some more research to be persuaded into choosing a side.

-Taylor Ahuero (Kin 332I T/Th 2:00pm)