Authors: Rob Beamish, Ian Ritchie
ISBN-13: 9780415770439, ISBN-10: 0415770432
Format: Paperback
Publisher: Taylor & Francis, Inc.
Date Published: August 2006
Edition: (Non-applicable)
Fastest, Highest, Strongest presents a comprehensive challenge to the dominant orthodoxy concerning the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport.
Examining the political and economic transformation of the Olympic Movement during the twentieth century, the authors argue that the realities of modern sport require a serious reassessment of current policies, in particular the ban on the use of certain substances and practices. The book includes detailed discussion of:
* The historical importance of World War II and the Cold War in the development of a high-performance culture in sport
* The changing Olympic project: from amateurism to a fully professionalized approach
* The changing meaning of "sport"
* The role of sport science, technology and drugs in pursuing ever-better performance
* The major ethical and philosophical arguments used to support the ban on performance-enhancing substances in sport.
Fastest, Highest, Strongest is a profound critical examination of modern sport. Its straightforward style will appeal to under- and post-graduate students as well as scholars of sports ethics and history, policy makers and all those interested in the changing nature of sport.
1 | From Coubertin's dream to high-performance sport : the shifting dynamics of Olympic sport | 11 |
2 | Steroids : Nazi propaganda, cold war fears, and "androgenized" women | 31 |
3 | "Sport," German traditions, and the development of "training" | 46 |
4 | From Stalingrad to Helsinki : the development of German sport systems | 66 |
5 | "Something had altered in the faces of the pigs ..." : converging sport systems in the GDR and FRG | 85 |
6 | Ethics reconsidered : the spirit of sport, the level playing field, and harm to the athlete | 105 |
Conclusion : the brave new world of high-performance sport | 136 |