Who were the greatest... most egregious... most vile... most talented cheaters in the history of sport? Socrates announces his list of favourites. He starts his series with Emperor of ancient Rome, Nero. Think that politicians could be tempted to cheat at sports? Surprise surprise. They do. It’s not just a recent phenomenon, either. Fudging the rules of sports by leaders has … [Read more...]
Postecoglou coaching pointers
Is there are greater waste of time in the world of sport than in listening to post match player and coach interviews. Normally, very little is revealed. Cliches, complaints about officials and restating of the bleedingly obvious abound. It was refreshing to see a coach interview, earlier this week, that revealed clear insight into a prominent coach's coaching … [Read more...]
Toxic style
Surfing is a unique sport. It can be so enthralling… so enchanting… so addictive… that, for some surfers, it can go beyond pleasurable and become a toxic experience damaging relationships, families, career, and even health. Sociologists have called this phenomenon as going past the “stoke apex”. These surfers have become victims of what journalist William Finnegan described as … [Read more...]
Are surfers sheep?
On a drizzling, dark late afternoon a few weeks back I was running on the track that links two surfing spots, The Pass and Wategos Beach. The path travels up a flight of steps, traverses a cliff line with a beautiful view of the ocean (a view that often includes sea eagles, dolphins, and whales), then passes down a second flight of stairs onto Wategos Beach below. It’s one of … [Read more...]
RITUAL: BEING CHAIRED UP THE BEACH
Now that the 2022 WSL World Championship season is over it is probably an appropriate time to revisit a story published by Chas Smith in online journal BeachGrit a few years back. One would think that, after his scathing critique of this ludicrous practice, that winners of surfing contests would have put their feet down by now and refused to be made to look like a staggering … [Read more...]