Group B blog post

In this week's readings on Muhammed Ali, I found the power of athletics to be very evident. During the 1960's and 1970's, Ali was a very controversial figure. While many people supported him, many others criticized him for his actions outside of the ring. However, in both "Requiem for the Heavyweights" and "Hugh...and Muhammed Ali", Ali is praised, and defended from his critics.

Before the Rumble in the Jungle, Ali was at a low. Previously unable to reattain the title, he had entered the fight against Foreman as a significant underdog. By defeating Foreman, Ali vaulted himself back into the public's favor, proving his worth in the ring. The ability that athletics have to change our views on a specific person is one that has been evident for centuries, as demonstrated in Pindar's odes. Similar to Ali's victory, Hieron's victory in the chariot race vaults him into fame, proving how long-lasting our society's focus on athletic heroes truly is.

Comments

  1. AnonymousSeptember 30, 2018 at 4:07 PM

    The treatment of athletes today can be compared to the treatment of athletes Pindar describes in his odes. Exceptional athletes become revered as kings by many and certainly have the fame and fortune of ancient kings. A perfect example is Lebron James, whose nickname is actually "The King." Lebron James has multiple gold medals at the Olympics for basketball, but those are not what contribute to his fame. Other sports leagues now grant its athletes the same fame in towns as the Olympics did thousands of years ago. This trend is international, from the MLB and NBA in America, to cricket leagues in the Caribbean and Asia, to the international FIFA soccer tournament. The top athletes in all these leagues are revered by fans as gods, which shows the enduring power of athletics throughout history.

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  2. UnknownSeptember 30, 2018 at 6:13 PM

    I agree with this idea of the power of athletes. We can see, especially in modern society, the impact they can have on our culture. Like in the past, if an athlete is successful, they can enjoy loads of fame and fortune. Now, however, we see more and more of how they can impact our world outside of athletics. Examples such as the protests in the NFL and the new school that Lebron James just built are just two of a multitude of issues that athletes address off the court/field.

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  3. AnonymousSeptember 30, 2018 at 6:40 PM

    Athletes have always been held to a different standard throughout history. Like any other category of famous people, athletes are constantly under the microscope of the public. Being critically examined has it's positives and negatives. On the positive side, athletes have much more societal influence due to a large audience. On the negative, any slip up on on or off the field will be noticed and scrutinized. Successful athletes who don't mess up are revered as heroes just as they were in ancient history.

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  4. AnonymousSeptember 30, 2018 at 7:09 PM

    Athletes for several years now have made an impact on and off the field/court. It seems that Muhammad Ali was one of the first athletes to start making an impact off the field/court. Today athletes like Colin Kaepernick and LeBron James are making significant impacts outside of sports. Some are critical about some of these actions while others look at the positive side of things. The sports world can thank athletes like Jackie Robinson and Muhammad Ali for paving the road for doing bigger things other than the sports they compete in.

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  5. Alison LillaOctober 15, 2018 at 9:23 AM

    It is interesting how athletics are just as important today as they were in the time of the Greeks. Just as Hieron became a powerful politician, many athletes have used their success to gain social and political positions such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jackie Robinson, and Lee Haney. Similarly, politicians still do better in elections when they have a military background. The difference from now and the time of the Greeks is that we don’t see athletes’ accomplishments as signs of their ability in war. Yet, we still value them greatly for their abilities.

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