The Sportsmanship of Cheating, Essay Example

The Perspective of the Ancient Greek Games

Introduction

Exploring the ancient Greek attitudes towards sportsmanship and cheating of course considers the contribution of the course texts of Miller, Pedley, Pendar, Potter, and Revsine and the extent of the Greek concerns then when comparing them to those of the 21st century. What emerges in the historical record reveals, “Although the first officially recorded Games were in 776 BC, they had been around before that (Champkin 16)”. Further to the literature on this subject finds Champkin revealing how the view of sportsmanship evolved with, “Cheating and threats … (becoming) common… (with) bribery of judges… (16)”. In fact, “The ancient Greeks were so possessed by the spirit of competition that they had a special word for it: thumos (Cantor and Hufnagel 51)”. This acknowledgement by Champkin of cheating (16) leads to investigating the attitude of the Greeks centered on this insight. The question is why was cheating a prominent aspect of ancient Greek sportsmanship in the Olympian games and how does this compare to the Games today?

Sportsmanship

The Historical Perspective

Beard describes how “…it’s easy for us to think back to the ancient Olympics with rosy, idealistic spectacles (16)”. This imagining leads to visions of these Games as good sportsmanship affairs based on the purity of honest competition (Beard 16). In fact, those Games of 3,000 years ago were festivals honoring the gods, yet the historical record describes the competitors as, “filthy, riddled with cheating and bribery and often ran over budget, necessitating rescue packages from millionaire benefactors (Beard 16)”.

As noted in the introduction, the Games were originally founded in 776 BC,  taking place in until 400 A.D. in southern Greece in the same spot every four years (Beard 16). The change in 400 A.D. was because the Christians had “decided that this style of pagan festival had had its day. The ban might have had something to do with the up-front nudity (Beard 16)”.

Consequently, with the Greek Olympian games at their peak by the 5th-4th centuries B.C.E. the location of the competition positioned near the Ionian Sea provided competitors from all areas of the Mediterranean easy access (Champkin 16). From the historical record explained by Champkin the competition spread over five days with 13 events that included chariot-racing (16). Adhering to the system set up for the competitors in preparation for the Games an important reflection of the Greek attitude of sportsmanship since the intention of the Games focused on honoring the gods of Greece living on Mt. Olympus (Champkin 16). Champkin describes among the multiple events of the pentathlon were competitions of both the javelin and discus throw, sprint foot races (16).

Competitors had to be at the appointed location a month before the Games (Champkin 16). In fact, “having trained for ten months in chastity, – the idea was that abstinence would purify the soul and give courage (Champkin 16)”. As significantly, “Greek vases also reveal the competitors to have been naked; … (with the runners and javelin throwers … portrayed as being beautiful… (Champkin 16).” All this was fundamental to the attitude about sportsmanship rather than cheating because to win at all costs was the focus (Champkin 16).

But the sportsmanship attitude toward the wrestlers did not see them as beautiful but rather, these competitors were participants in a vicious and hard sport; these were both vicious and hard men (Champkin 16). In the heavy athletic competitions exemplified by the pentathlon boxing and pankration, with wresting few rules applied.

Few Rules Applied

Wrestling was no-holds barred (Champkin 16). This effectively meant the one rule competitors in vying to win in the pankration was that gouging out eyes and biting was forbidden (Champkin 16). But everything else was okay including head-butting with no time limit on bouts with them running until submission including to the death while runners-up received nothing since coming in second was not counted (Champkin 16).

These open-handed rules were not as much about cheating, but the attitude presents a debatable subject from a philosophical perspective (“Cheating…” 16). The thesis presented in the above then looks to answering why was cheating a prominent aspect of ancient Greek sportsmanship in the Olympian games and how does this compare to the games today in terms of sportsmanship.

Comparing the Ancient and the Modern

Jones takes on the issue of comparing the ancient Greek attitude about sportsmanship and cheating with the modern (12). Describing how the usual accusations of scandals – cheating, corruption in high places is a prevalent aspect of the Games in 21st century attitude among the global community (Jones 12), the reality is today as in ancient times, “Cheating is a standard feature of all games (Greeks tripped and bumped their way through the sprints). But the other problems – boredom and corruption in high places – would disappear if people only followed ancient Greek precedent in three vital respects (Jones 12)”. Another insight on this aspect of the subject looks at the article “Olympic Cheating Not New, by Zeus!” and its contribution describing that while unlike the modern Games, enhancing drug use among the ancient competitors was never a hazard suffered by those long ago Games, yet enough cases of bribery proved just as unsporting (10).

Eupolos of Thessaly – in the 98th games – was the first to be so punished, along with the two boxers he bribed to throw a fight. The inscriptions, apart from naming names, stressed that the prize was won by speed of feet and strength of body, not by cash. They added that the fearsome images of Zeus, hurling his thunderbolt, should help to deter crooked athletes from defiling the sacred enclosure. (“Olympic…” 10)

The next documented case of bribery occurred during the 14th Olympiad hailing from Athens and the attempted bribery of the opponents by Kallippos allowing him to win the pentathlon (“Olympic…” 10). The Athenians were so upset with this unsporting behavior resulting in a mere fine to that they proceeded boycotting the games despite the fine paid anyway (“Olympic …” 10). But it is Jones who has compared the unsporting acts of cheating and bribery comparable to the modern corruption of the Games by proposing changes (12).

First, the original Games were (theoretically) restricted to Greeks…Second, the Games lasted five days. They were over so quickly because the number of events was strictly limited. Between the Games’ foundation in 776 (B.C.E.) and 520 (B.C.E.), the basic canon was established – 13 events… Finally, the Olympics were always held in the same place – at Olympia (in … [honor] of Olympian Zeus) … (The organizers’) acknowledged expertise meant high-level corruption was non-existent. (Jones 12)

This proposed formula for addressing the rampant corruption associated with the Olympian games today by Jones continues comparing how the sportsmanship of the ancient Greeks aside from their own corruption with bribes and cheating looks to the fact how the modern Olympics have too many competitive games (12). The devaluation that results with the endless variety of modern Olympic games there is the opportunity for less interest that is represented by the global community toward this major competitive event and the gap in the current prevailing nonsporting attitude  (Jones 12).

Conclusion

Addressing the thesis of the above academic exploration and the question why was cheating a prominent aspect of ancient Greek sportsmanship in the Olympian games and how does this compare to the Games today proved important in researching the literature. The historic record consistent acknowledgment of the corruption in the ancient Games and how it aligns to the current nonsporting reality of the modern Games leads to a pragmatic approach about why. The implication from the ancient and modern corruption of cheating in the modern use of performance enhancing drugs among competitors and the ancient use of bribery leads to how the lack of ethics as a reality of human nature at its worse is not a new thing. That is the bottom line of answer to the thesis. The desire for some people then and now to win at all costs and put aside sportsmanship by cheating proves too strong a temptation and is the central causal factor of why this behavior took place in ancient times and today..

Works Cited

Beard, Mary. “Cheating, Traffic Jams and Lavish Perks for Sponsors. the Olympics Were JUST the Same 2,000 Years Ago.” Daily Mail (London). Web. http://www.questia.com/read/1G1-297507466/cheating-traffic-jams-and-lavish-perks-for-sponsors. July 25, 2012,

Cantor, Paul A., and Hufnagel, Peter. “The Olympics of the Mind Philosophy and Athletics in the Ancient Greek World” in The Olympics and Philosophy, ed. Heather L. Reid and Michael W. Austin (Lexington, KY: University Press of Kentucky. Web. http://www.questia.com/read/122925024/the-olympics-and-philosophy. 2012.

Champkin, Julian. “The Original Fight Club; Cheating, Violence and Bribery Are Nothing New at the Olympics – at the Ancient Greek Games, Competitors Would Do Anything to Win, Says Julian Champkin”. Daily Mail (London). Web. http://www.questia.com/read/1G1-119753908/the-original-fight-club-cheating-violence-and-bribery. July 25, 2004.

Jones, Peter. “Ancient & Modern,” The Spectator. Web. http://www.questia.com/read/1P3-26757626/ancient-modern. February 21, 1998.

Miller, S. G. Arete: reek Sports from Ancient Sources 3rd ed. Berkeley. 2012.

“Olympic Cheating Not New, by Zeus!”. The Birmingham Post (England). Web. http://www.questia.com/read/1G1-121197913/olympic-cheating-not-new-by-zeus. August 24, 2004.

Pedley, J. Sanctuaries and the Sacred in the Ancient Greek World. Cambridge. 2006.

Pindar. The Complete Poems (tr. A Verity). Oxford. 2007.

Potter, D. The Victor’s Crown. Oxford. 2011.

Revsine, D. Opening Kickoff: The Tumultuous Birth of a Football Nation. Guilford. 2014.