Sport and Society

The EBU lost their High Court case against the government on 7th July. They claimed that the word ‘sport’ in its normal and natural meaning was sufficient to cover all kinds of sporting activities. For many years the sport had been treated as an elitist category that had some unearned privilege. However this was not the case and the term sport was recognised as having general public interest. This view was challenged with the consultation of the House of Commons Select Committee on Sport and Wellness, which led to the inquiry into why the UK has not been able to set up a statutory regulation to protect sport and give it its rights and protection.

In the report by Lord Smith of Goldsmith the inquiry concluded that there were three main reasons for the failure of the UK to protect its many different types of sport. These were that sport was now seen as a form of leisure activity, it was not a commercial activity and as a result there was no regulation of its standards and ethics. These three reasons meant that the UK was now relatively backwards when compared to other European countries which placed greater emphasis on regulating sports. For instance the European Union has a vastly powerful and far-reaching regulatory body and sports bodies are governed and regulated according to strict sporting criteria. Other countries also have developed non-traditional sports such as fencing and tennis and as a result these types of non-traditional sports have become popular and there are now many television programmes which focus on these sports.

The last major issue was that sport was seen as a commercial activity and this meant that there was less funding for it. There are now however billions of pounds available every year from the UK government for the development of sporting activities. Sports can be described as a mixture of physical action and mental acuity that is engaged in to achieve particular goals. It is therefore no surprise that many people define sport as a form of mental and physical exercise that also provides great social and sporting benefits.

Sport is now acknowledged as an important contributor to a child’s development and has become regarded as a key area for educational provision. Sport can help to shape the social and emotional well-being of a young person and has been shown to improve academic performance in both boys and girls. The number of children taking part in organised sports has been steadily increasing in recent years with an increase in the number of governing bodies, allowing children to participate in sport.

Many non-specialist sports clubs have been set up and there are now many recognised international sports events including the World Cup and the Olympics. The World Rugby Cup and the Olympic Games have helped to boost interest in playing sport both as a participant and a spectator. The governing bodies and sporting organisations all across the globe have worked hard to ensure that sport delivers opportunities for everyone to participate in sport.

Sport, as a whole, has changed over time and the quality and quantity of skill that spectators can enjoy have increased considerably. The quality of athletes competing against each other has improved vastly in recent years and this has helped to raise the standard of the sport itself. Whether you choose to watch the Olympics, the World Cup or just the local college and university games, you can be sure that you will be entertained by the exciting action. You will always be able to look back and appreciate the fact that you had the opportunity to take part in one of the greatest sporting events of all time.