Healthy Body Keeps Healthy Mind - Essay Example

Issues in Sports Introduction: There is a famous saying which goes like ‘Healthy body keeps healthy Mind,’ which highlights the concept that when a body will remain in a perfect shape, then the mind automatically will be in a positive shape to perform better. Human body is like a machine in which all parts associate and interlink with each other. If one part stops working, then the performance of the other parts affects resulting in decline in the overall performance of the body. It is case of the human society as well, as every member has to contribute effectively in its functioning, and most importantly, ethics play an important role in it and when one witnesses an unethical occurrence, it results in adverse outcomes. Continuing with the example, therefore, a healthy body is in linkage with healthy mind. As far as the human body engages itself in physical training like exercise, the mind remains fresh and functions properly. Keeping in view of this fact and giving importance to physical fitness, governments of various nations have initiated plans to promote sports activities and physical education so that more and more people can participate in various sports such as football, hockey, cricket, and gymnastics to keep them fully fit. Although the governments fully plan to provide sports services to the local population of the country, however, they surely invest huge sum of money on national sports teams that represent country on international level. Representing a country in any international event is a huge responsibility that is taken by a national team of that country and thus, it has to ensure the players perform well in the event to create a better image of the country in that particular sport event (BBC, 2010). Unfortunately, there have been events and incidents in the past that highlight the fact that sports events are often filled with controversies (Wilson, pp. 63-89) and unethical acts by sportsmen resulting in strong action taken by the sport board association, as well as humiliation and bad image of the country in the international arena. In this regard, this paper will include discussion on some of the ethical dilemmas in the sports field that will allow a critical understanding regarding the topic. Unethical Actions If one carries out thorough review of the sport activities and tournaments between various countries in different sports, then it has been an observation that a decade ago, players were not even aware of any technique through which they can take unfair advantage over their opponents (Mottram, pp. 376-381). However, in present times, so many unethical acts have been uncovered by several sports governing bodies that it has become pretty convincing that players or the sportsmen are not involved in fair play of the sports but on the other hand, take help of certain unlawful sources that help them perform better. In the list of such ethical dilemmas is usage of drugs or steroids in the field (BBC, 2010). For instance, in athletics, studies have indicated that athletes have started taking certain unlawful substance/drugs that help them enhance their performance while they are performing against their competitors (Wilson, pp. 63-89). This matter of usage of illegal drugs has been a constant threat for many sports governing bodies and due to which athletes and players often confronting random testing to test whether they are taking drugs to perform better or not. In particular, usage of drugs is not only limited to athletics. For instance, during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, Irish swimmer Michelle Smith (CBC Sports, 2003) was found taking drugs after tests, and she confronted suspension of four years. This disgrace has also contaminated other sports activities all around the world. Players from rugby, hockey, football and cricket are often tested positive on drugs due to which either they are fined heavily or banned for a certain period from that particular sport. Factors Apart from the usage of drugs that is an unethical and unlawful act in the field of sports, experts (Bull & Roberts, pp. 30-45) have put efforts to identify factors for existence of such an ethical dilemma in the sports field. In the result, it has been an understanding that gambling and spot fixing that is now becoming very common in almost every game is one of the major reasons of such unethical acts in the field. In specific, it is more like bribing a team to underperform and lose the match intentionally to attain huge profits (Wilson, pp. 63-89). There are several incidents in the history in which top in-form teams have lost matches against the weaker ones due to gambling that pays heavy amount of money to the players for not performing up to their skills. Due to such unethical activities taking place, many people have quit taking interest in sports that leaves a poor impact on the sports itself and its growth in coming years. For instance, analysis (Fox Sports, 2010) has indicated that cricket is one of the sports that have received so much criticism in the past few years as there have been doubts regarding fixing of matches before even their beginning (Fraser, pp. 13-21). Teams that are considered favorite for winning the game loses cheaply to the teams that have been out of form that raises concerns whether the winning team has bribed the losing team for not performing well or that the losing team really could not perform well in that particular game (Fraser, pp. 13-21). All these incidents in cricket have resulted in experts criticizing the sport governing body, the ICC (International cricket council) for not responding appropriately to counter such unethical acts in the sport. Moreover, the controversy of spot fixing scandal, which occurred recently in which certain parts of the game were fixed or pre planned has smashed image of the game and involved teams all over the world that has resulted in the reconsideration of fans to follow or quit the sport. Unethical acts in sports have not started in recent years but their traces are observable from decades when sportsmen/athletes used to adopt unfair practices to obtain benefits while performing in various sports. Though at those times there were not anti-doping or sports governing bodies to keep a strict check on the players (Wilson, pp. 63-89). It was after many years and thanks to advanced technology that a system came in to keep a strict look at the players and their activities. It is an observation that the main reason behind players choosing unethical ways is to obtain unlawful benefits by consuming drugs to enhance their performance against their opponents. Secondly, the other reason for choosing wrong ways is definitely the financial attractions and motivations offered by agents and gamblers to the players. Sportsmen that are involved in different scandals and controversies are getting huge sum of money due to which they do not perform up to the right level of their skills and talent (Sports Drugs, 2010). Ethical values governing the situation Adopting wrong and unethical acts in any field is unacceptable and is discouraged in every community, therefore, the same rule applies in the field of sports as well where players/athletes are strictly required to follow the code of conduct and abstain from doing anything that is against the law (Mottram, pp. 376-381). It is a strong recommendation that the players or the athletes when taking part in any competition must never consume any banned or illegal substance or drugs. As players are nowadays tested for drugs before taking part in any sports event, hence, they must make sure that they have not consumed anything illegal because in case of being tested positive for drugs, they are surely to be banned, and furthermore, that will degrade the image of the country they belong to. Similarly, the players/athletes must also abstain from unlawful practices like gambling, match fixing, and spot fixing as these activities destroy the image and the spirit of the game (ProCon, 2010). Furthermore, countries involved in such practices have to face humiliation in front of the world due to such activities. Hence, the sportsmen spirit is all about adopting fair practices and it should remain a priority of every sportsmen. Moral Obligations for People in Power There are certain heads and officials who are the right people governing the sport and looking after the players and teams taking part in the sport. These officials are actually part of the sport bodies like ICC, FIFA, and IHF etc. It is the responsibility of such boards and the individuals working in these boards to keep a strong check on the teams and players taking part in the sport and make sure that no illegal or unfair practices exist within and outside the sport. The officials must scrutinize every move of the players and assure the adaptation and practice of fair practices. Finally, imposition of strict punishments with fines for the players should be one of the principles of such bodies that would lead towards improving the image and the spirit of the sport. In conclusion, the paper has discussed some of the evident ethical dilemmas that exist in the sports field, and it is imperative that authorities must take solid steps to eliminate this social menace from the industry. Works Cited BBC. “Drugs in Sport.” BBC – Doping. Retrieved on October 15, 2010: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/pe/performance/1_performance_drugsinsport_rev1.shtml Bull, R. Charles and Roberts, William O. Bull’s Handbook of Sports Injuries. McGraw-Hill Professional, 2004. Retrieved on October 15, 2010: http://books.google.com/books?id=E-D3eSzNWJgC&pg=PA30&dq=ethical+dilemma+in+sports+%2B+drugs&hl=en&ei=L_PATP2xBserccPA_dgL&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CDkQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=ethical%20dilemma%20in%20sports%20%2B%20drugs&f=false CBC Sports. “Drugs and Sport.” CBC Sports Online, 2003. Retrieved on October 15, 2010: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/indepth/drugs/stories/top10.html Fox Sports. Cricket’s Match-fixing Scandals. Retrieved on October 15, 2010: http://www.foxsports.com.au/cricket/australia/hansie-cronje-headlines-list-of-crickets-match-fixing-scandals/story-fn2mcu3x-1225924254560 Fraser, David. Cricket and the Law. Routledge, 2005. Mottram, David R. Drugs in Sport. Taylor & Francis, 2005. . Retrieved on October 15, 2010: http://books.google.com/books?id=4epMG8WqenIC&pg=PA376&dq=ethical+dilemma+in+sports+%2B+drugs&hl=en&ei=L_PATP2xBserccPA_dgL&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=ethical%20dilemma%20in%20sports%20%2B%20drugs&f=false ONDCP. “Drugs and Sports.” Office of National Drug Control Policy, 2010. Retrieved on October 15, 2010: http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/prevent/sports/index.html ProCon. “Sports and Drugs.” ProCon.org. Retrieved on October 15, 2010: http://sportsanddrugs.procon.org/ Sports Drugs. “Drugs in Sport.” Sports Drugs, 2010. Retrieved on October 15, 2010: http://www.sports-drugs.com/drugs-in-sport.htm Wilson, Wayne. Doping in Elite Sport. Human Kinetics, 2001. Retrieved on October 15, 2010: http://books.google.com/books?id=wi2d4YyLh3wC&pg=PA282&dq=ethical+dilemma+in+sports+%2B+drugs&hl=en&ei=L_PATP2xBserccPA_dgL&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CD8Q6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=ethical%20dilemma%20in%20sports%20%2B%20drugs&f=false Read More