Ian ConstantineDoes sport unify or divide?
April 23rd 2008 23:04
Sport has the power to both unify and divide, but then again, that’s the entire point. Sport is competitive, it’s tribal, and it’s us vs. them. The whole point, apart from the enjoyment is to win. Your mates one week might be your enemies the next it is what makes sport so intriguing, so interesting so enticing. Take Origin for example, it divides two states and is treated like a war. Loyalties for club players are thrown out the window if they wear the opposite state colours. There is an underlying hatred against the other state and their players. I hate Queensland for instance even though they have Manly centre Steven Bell.
Having said this, as soon as the World Cup rolls around we as Australians will be unified. My hatred for Darren Lockyer and co will be put on hold temporarily as we aim to win. Notice the term ‘we’. Where once there was a feeling of hatred, now becomes a feeling of national pride. Sport is fickle and so to are our loyalties.
This is the obvious example where society can be unified and divided depending on what competition of league is being played. There are the individual sport stars however who challenge the notion of unity or division. Sport stars such as Anthony Mundine and Lleyton Hewitt have the power to divide opinion and cause extensive debate. It seems everybody has their own two cents worth. The media plays on this to sell newspapers; it gets people talking and promotes discussion.
Just mentioning Mundine creates heated debate which shows the importance our society places on sport. The media of course plays a huge role in this. It seems that every man and his dog have an opinion on choc. He is one of the most controversial athletes in Australian sport, but then again, he tries to be. His latest victory led to the immortal words; “Youse can't say s**t! I am a two time, two time world champion!” Thanks Anthony, very profound. Mundine has divided the sporting public, on one hand you have the choco-holics who think that he is an incredible athlete in his own right and doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. In the other, you have the croc-chocs who think he is nothing more than a loud mouth clown.
People believe what they want to believe, but what has he actually achieved? On paper he is a two-time world champion, which is what we have all been told, but is this real? Jeff Wells (Daily Telegraph) wrote an interesting article on Choc, admittedly one-sided, it does make some compelling points.
He notes, most importantly, that on the WBA official website Mundine is ranked No.1 with (oc) adjacent to his name; the oc stands for official challenger. How can this be? Kessler, the man who humbled Mundine was elevated to Super Champion, which left the IBF belt vacant. Choc then beat Soliman which earned him the right to call himself a ‘two time champ’.
Sure, Mundine is a great athlete, but only if he beats Kessler is he worthy of world champion status. He is a sport icon that not only attracts attention but demands it. Love him or hate him, he has got people talking about boxing again. Which demonstrates how sport intrinsically divides people. Sport stars have figured out that by being controversial they gain more coverage and thus more money. They play devils advocate and thus become bigger sporting profiles.
When you actually talk to Mundine he is one of the most humble, generous people you could meet - but when it comes to selling tickets - nobody does it better than 'the man' Mundine.
Muhammad Ali wasn’t always so popular – when he was younger he was seen much the same as Mundine, a brash, loud-mouth kid. But over time he won over the World and is now seen as ‘The Greatest’ – he became and still is one of the most recognizable faces on the planet. But there was a time when he was hated.
The other example that rung true for me was the A-League Grand Final the Newcastle Jets v the Central Coast Mariners. The game exploded in injury time when the Mariners were denied a contentious penalty claim – as far as Australian soccer goes – all hell broke loose. John Aloisi went absolutely mental, veins popped out of his neck, his face went bright red – actually if compared next to Ronald Macdonald’s hair it would have made it look blonde! He screamed at the ref, he screamed at the sideline official and he grabbed Jets players by the throat.
This was all right near the Squadron (the name of the Jets main fan base) and they were less than impressed with his ‘Incredible Hulk’ antics. This was not how somebody should behave, let alone a sporting icon…
It was then somebody remarked as the boos and jeers rang down over Aloisi for his childlike behaviour –
“Funny isn’t it?”
“What is?”
“He’s a sporting icon – a hero, he will be forever etched into our sporting landscape, yet how quickly you can hate him.”
For those who have been living under Ayres Rock- Aloisi kicked the Penalty that sent Australia into the World Cup – the footage of him running down the sideline wielding his jersey will go down in folklore and forever replayed.
But on this day – Aloisi was a villain – hated by the Newcastle supporters.
Sport is a fickle commodity, and how we love it…
Having said this, as soon as the World Cup rolls around we as Australians will be unified. My hatred for Darren Lockyer and co will be put on hold temporarily as we aim to win. Notice the term ‘we’. Where once there was a feeling of hatred, now becomes a feeling of national pride. Sport is fickle and so to are our loyalties.
Hated in Maroon - loved in green and gold
This is the obvious example where society can be unified and divided depending on what competition of league is being played. There are the individual sport stars however who challenge the notion of unity or division. Sport stars such as Anthony Mundine and Lleyton Hewitt have the power to divide opinion and cause extensive debate. It seems everybody has their own two cents worth. The media plays on this to sell newspapers; it gets people talking and promotes discussion.
Just mentioning Mundine creates heated debate which shows the importance our society places on sport. The media of course plays a huge role in this. It seems that every man and his dog have an opinion on choc. He is one of the most controversial athletes in Australian sport, but then again, he tries to be. His latest victory led to the immortal words; “Youse can't say s**t! I am a two time, two time world champion!” Thanks Anthony, very profound. Mundine has divided the sporting public, on one hand you have the choco-holics who think that he is an incredible athlete in his own right and doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. In the other, you have the croc-chocs who think he is nothing more than a loud mouth clown.
People believe what they want to believe, but what has he actually achieved? On paper he is a two-time world champion, which is what we have all been told, but is this real? Jeff Wells (Daily Telegraph) wrote an interesting article on Choc, admittedly one-sided, it does make some compelling points.
He notes, most importantly, that on the WBA official website Mundine is ranked No.1 with (oc) adjacent to his name; the oc stands for official challenger. How can this be? Kessler, the man who humbled Mundine was elevated to Super Champion, which left the IBF belt vacant. Choc then beat Soliman which earned him the right to call himself a ‘two time champ’.
Sure, Mundine is a great athlete, but only if he beats Kessler is he worthy of world champion status. He is a sport icon that not only attracts attention but demands it. Love him or hate him, he has got people talking about boxing again. Which demonstrates how sport intrinsically divides people. Sport stars have figured out that by being controversial they gain more coverage and thus more money. They play devils advocate and thus become bigger sporting profiles.
When you actually talk to Mundine he is one of the most humble, generous people you could meet - but when it comes to selling tickets - nobody does it better than 'the man' Mundine.
Muhammad Ali wasn’t always so popular – when he was younger he was seen much the same as Mundine, a brash, loud-mouth kid. But over time he won over the World and is now seen as ‘The Greatest’ – he became and still is one of the most recognizable faces on the planet. But there was a time when he was hated.
The other example that rung true for me was the A-League Grand Final the Newcastle Jets v the Central Coast Mariners. The game exploded in injury time when the Mariners were denied a contentious penalty claim – as far as Australian soccer goes – all hell broke loose. John Aloisi went absolutely mental, veins popped out of his neck, his face went bright red – actually if compared next to Ronald Macdonald’s hair it would have made it look blonde! He screamed at the ref, he screamed at the sideline official and he grabbed Jets players by the throat.
This was all right near the Squadron (the name of the Jets main fan base) and they were less than impressed with his ‘Incredible Hulk’ antics. This was not how somebody should behave, let alone a sporting icon…
It was then somebody remarked as the boos and jeers rang down over Aloisi for his childlike behaviour –
“Funny isn’t it?”
“What is?”
“He’s a sporting icon – a hero, he will be forever etched into our sporting landscape, yet how quickly you can hate him.”
Loved one day ...
For those who have been living under Ayres Rock- Aloisi kicked the Penalty that sent Australia into the World Cup – the footage of him running down the sideline wielding his jersey will go down in folklore and forever replayed.
But on this day – Aloisi was a villain – hated by the Newcastle supporters.
Sport is a fickle commodity, and how we love it…
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