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John R. Gerdy knows sports inside-out. He has been an All-American Basketball Player whose college jersey was retired. He was briefly a professional player. Later he served as an associate commissioner in the NCAA's Southeastern Conference, and as a legislative and ethical advisor to the NCAA and ...

John R. Gerdy knows sports inside-out. He has been an All-American Basketball Player whose college jersey was retired. He was briefly a professional player. Later he served as an associate commissioner in the NCAA's Southeastern Conference, and as a legislative and ethical advisor to the NCAA and the Knight Commission. Currently he teaches courses on sports administration.

Now, in Sports: The All-American Addiction, he brings his insights and observations together in a radical, critical evaluation of the impact of sports on American life.

This book argues that our society's huge investment in organized sports is unjustified. Ardent boosters say that sports embody the "American Way, " developing winners by teaching lessons in sportsmanship, teamwork, and discipline. In fact, Gerdy writes, modern sports are eroding American life and undermining traditional American values essential to the well-being of the nation and its people. Like a drug, this obsession allows Americans to escape problems and ignore issues.

Gerdy asks tough questions. Have sports lost their relevance? Is it just mindless entertainment? Is our enormous investment in sports as educational tools appropriate for a nation that needs graduates to compete in the information-based, global economy of the twenty-first century? Do organized sports continue to promote positive ideals? Or, do sports, in the age of television, corporate sky boxes, and sneaker deals, represent something far different?

Boldly making his case, Gerdy detects five causes for alarm. A violent, win-at-all-cost mentality exists. A greater number of spectators are idly watching the few elite athletes. An athletic culture that is anti-intellectualsystematically creates "dumb jocks." While bridges, inner-cities, and schools are crumbling, tremendous sums of tax dollars vanish to wealthy owners, millionaire players, and to college athletic programs. Studies show that spor

This new ground-breaking analysis explores the social history and politics of 'mega-events' from the late 19th century to the present. Through case studies of mega-events such as the 1851 Crystal Palace Expo, the 1936 Berlin Olympics and the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, Maurice Roche investigates the ...

This new ground-breaking analysis explores the social history and politics of 'mega-events' from the late 19th century to the present. Through case studies of mega-events such as the 1851 Crystal Palace Expo, the 1936 Berlin Olympics and the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, Maurice Roche investigates the impact Expos and Olympics have had on national identities, on the marking of public time and space, and on visions of national citizenship and international society in modern times. Historical chapters deal with the production of Expos by power elites, their impacts on mass culture, and the political uses and abuses of international sport and Olympic events. Chapters also deal with the impact of Olympics on cities, the growth of Olympics as 'media events' and the current crisis of the Olympic movement in world politics and culture.

Although female athletes are successful in all types of sport, in many countries sport is still a male domain. This book examines and compares the sporting experiences of women from different countries around the world and offers the first systematic and cross-cultural analysis of the topic of women ...

Although female athletes are successful in all types of sport, in many countries sport is still a male domain. This book examines and compares the sporting experiences of women from different countries around the world and offers the first systematic and cross-cultural analysis of the topic of women in sport. Sport and Women presents a wealth of new research data, including in-depth case-studies of 16 countries in North and South America, Asia, Eastern and Western Europe and Africa. In addition, the book offers comparative assessments of the extent to which women are represented in global sport and the opportunities that women have to participate in decision-making processes in sport. The book illuminates a wide range of key international issues in women's sport, such as cultural barriers to participation and the efficacy of political action. It is therefore essential reading for anybody with an interest in the sociology, culture and politics of sport.