Changing Faces of Sports

What is the greatest ill effect of the capitalist system? Well pundits may differ but all will advocate that this very system changes each and every aspect into a notion of profit. This will be clearer if you take sports as an instance. Once upon a time it was said that a nation is known by its exploits in the international arena of sports. Perhaps we have left those days behind and what we are having at present is nothing but a saga of sports entertainment. You can take any sport and the message will be apparent. Once upon a time nations used to struggle in the international sports events like Olympic or World Cup Soccer and the best performing country used to be the winner. Nevertheless, the style is followed but the same platform is now used for sales promotion either for the participating national team or for the individual. The IPL (Indian Premier League) in the domain of cricket happening now can be a good example. The IPL is destined to modify the conventional dimension of cricket by introducing Twenty-20 cricket. Now, if the entire concept had been within the domain of cricket, the cricket fraternity would have been happier. On the contrary it has become an ideal notion of sports entertainment where the sultry cheerleaders from US have also been introduced to boost the spectators.

It may be that this is possible in the Indian subcontinent where cricket is a religion. But the same can be and is with other sports in other countries. Can we deny the changing aspect of wrestling? This sport, once introduced to estimate the physical strength of the competitors, is no longer restricted to the ideals introduced thousands of years ago. It has become by now a definite package of sports entertainment, thanks to the introduction of WWF. It has become akin to a corporate industry controlled soap opera. The same fate is perhaps waiting for others also. It is true that fabulous amount of money will be invested minus the passion and vigor that forms the foundation of any sport.