Essay for students on should sports and politics be separated

Sports and politics, both adrenaline pumping traditionally male dominated fields, have always been intertwined. But with more and more commercialization of sports in recent times, this liaison has proved to be very messy. With sports’ deals turning more and more lucrative as far as commercialization is concerned, politicization of sports has increased manifold, in recent years.

Whether it is the recent Sourav-Chappell episode, or the Pillai story in hockey, politicization of sports has proved injurious and degrading for sports. If sports are to get back its lost innocence, it must no doubt be freed from this unnecessary, mindless political influence. However, it becomes necessary to examine the causes behind such politicization over the years.

Kings and Heads of State have traditionally been patrons of not only sportsmen but also of the major sporting events. Often such involvements led to undesirable interferences, robbing sports of its innocence. But magnitude of such interference, no doubt, increased in the latter half of the twentieth century.

Even the greatest sporting extravaganza on earth the Olympic Games have increasingly been marred by political contentions and have undermined the avowed aim of modern Olympics to foster international unity.

This happened especially during the two World Wars. World War I saw the cancellation of the Olympic Games of 1916. In 1936, Hitler tried to use them to demonstrate Aryan superiority and Nazi power, but was snubbed by the extraordinary exploits of the black American sprinter Jesse Owens (who won an unprecedented 4 Gold medals). The games scheduled for 1940 and 1944 were also cancelled due to World War II.

Tragedy, resulting out of the political contentions in Middle East, marked the 1972 Munich Olympic Games, as members of an Arab guerilla organization killed two Israeli athletes and took nine others as hostage, who were later killed. The US withdrew from the 1980 Olympic Games held in Moscow in the former USSR due to political reasons; the erstwhile USSR retaliated by dropping out of 1984 Games held in Los Angeles in the US.

The Games thereafter have, however, managed to keep out political issues from the sporting arena.

Similarly, popular games like football, cricket and basketball have been victims of increasing politicization. During the second half of the 20th century, these games have been increasingly, commercialized. Football, for example, has become a very big business and a branch of the entertainment industry.

Inevitably, these have been rampant corruption and instances of bribery, match-fixing, fraud, and illegal or irregular payments. Football players are paid huge salaries and millions of pounds change hands over transfers of players between football clubs.

Cricket too, has become increasingly dependent on revenue from sponsorship, and big investments of television companies. This was, to an extent, inevitable, as professional cricket would not have survived without it. A major landmark of this commercialization occurred in 1977 when Kerry Packer, the Australian business tycoon who died recently, signed 35 of the best cricketers available, to play in the first ever ODI.

Many players, who joined, were banned from playing for their countries. Cricket has been for long subject to considerable political pressures which have led to demonstrations, riots, and banning of cricketers, especially those who disregarded the rules of governing body by going to play or coach in South Africa while it was under apartheid regime.

However, the greatest controversy to have hit cricket was the match fixing scandal of 2000 involving several top cricketers. Players were variously accused of anything from throwing matches to receiving money from bookmakers in exchange of information.

South Africa’s captain Hansie Cronje, who was later killed in a plane crash, was found guilty of receiving money from bookmakers in exchange of information. Former Indian and Pakistani captains, Mohd. Azharuddin and Salim Malik, respectively, were also found guilty of infringements and were banned from the game.

Cricket has always been popular in India, but commercialization took place on a huge scale only in the 90s with the advent of satellite television in India. The intense competition among various channels for telecast rights and the increasing revenue flowing in from grant of such rights, have contributed to making the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) one of the most powerful and richest cricketing bodies in the world.

Just how powerful the Board has become can be judged from the drama surrounding the recently concluded elections to the post of the BCCI President. The fact that a Union Minister deems it necessary to slog it out for such a post, the judiciary has to interfere in the election process, and the media follows such drama frame by frame, speaks volumes on the power play within the Board.

The accusations of financial transgression against former BCCI President, Mr. Jagmohan Dalmiya show that such a post is not only powerful but financially lucrative also.

Nevertheless, whether such accumulation of power is serving the interests of the game remains questionable. Most of the people believe it has become a case of cricket and its revenues are serving the interests of the board members rather than the other way round. Though controversy surrounds most actions of the board, selections have come under cloud.

The selectors have been accused of letting regionalism affect selections but the Sourav-Chappell episode helped to highlight just how deep the malaise has set in. It is sad that the power players can stoop to any level including leaking confidential e-mails concerning senior players and roaches to further their selfish aims.

The Sourav episode clearly shows riot selection depends not only on performance but also on clout within the board. Several former players and even some of the current members of the team are expressing their discontent at the unprofessional way in which the board is being run. Clearly cricket cannot flourish in such an environment of nepotism.

However, it is not only cricket that is suffering due to undue political interference in India. The story is same for most of the other sports. Elections to national squads for most of the games and sports smell of bureaucratic and political influences. It is hardly surprising that India seldom performs well at prestigious events like Olympics or other international sports events, given that talented sportspersons are often overlooked due to political rigging.

It is essential that sports bodies be run along professional lines so that a degree of responsibility and accountability is introduced in sports administration. For the BCCI which is by far the richest and most powerful sports body in India, it is of utmost necessity that it be subjected to professional discipline, not only for the millions of fans who sit glued to television sets following every match but also for the small-town, starry- eyed Dhonis, Patels, Rainas and Pathans Who dream of making it big one day.

It is these aspiring sportspersons, who want to excel in the less adulated games like hockey or football, who should know that their talent will jet duly recognized. Moreover, in this age when a thirty something player has to regularly compete with eighteen year olds, it should be seen that the sportspersons have a certain degree of financial security. Only this can encourage a long term commitment towards any sport and prevent the burning out of young players due to excess pressure.

This should not be very difficult, given the increasing revenues earned from increasing commercialization of most of the sports. However, this is possible only when politics is not allowed to mess with sports. Only then can sports survive and restore its lost innocence and vitality.