Slap shots and Turns
A downhill skier gracefully completes another turn while an ice hockey player checks an opponent into the glass. The skier sails off a jump like an eagle, just as the hockey player absorbs the blows of opposing players like a tank. The skier lands the jump with precision, as the hockey player stumbles towards the opposing goal. The skier gracefully passes the finish line and stops just as the hockey player shoots the puck. As the skier notices the time of his run, he cries tears of joy because he has just won the gold medal. The hockey player hears the horn sound as his puck sails into the goal. He spits blood out of his mouth as his teammates tackle him because they have just won the Stanley Cup. Both of these athletes have won the highest prize in each of their sports. Both will be hailed by children as gods in the sporting world. However, because these two men are in different sports they will never meet each other. Both will go home and celebrate their accomplishments in different ways. The public will celebrate along with these two athletes, unaware that they both accomplished the same feat. The public believes these two athletes participated in totally different sports. The public believes that one played the graceful sport of downhill skiing, while the other played the brutal sport of ice hockey. At a superficial level it may appear that these two sports are different, however digging deeper proves that the sports of ice hockey and downhill skiing are quite similar in their technique.
Ice hockey and downhill skiing are similar in that both utilize the same method to perpetuate motion. An ice hockey player wears a skate that posses a sharp blade at its base. This blade is believed to merely cut through the ice when movement occurs. This belief is false. In actuality the pressure applied to the blade via the weight of the hockey player causes the blade to melt a small of amount of ice underneath it. Then the blade proceeds to hydroplane over the small film of water melted by the skate. Immediately after the skate has passed over the small film of water it freezes again into ice. This is the reason the ice needs to be smoothed after a match, because it did not freeze into a flat, level surface.
Saul Indian Horse is an Ojibway child who grew up in a land which offered little contact with anyone belonging to a different kind of society until he was forced to attend a residential school in which children were being stripped away of their culture with the scope of assimilating them into a more “civilized” community. Saul’s childhood in the school, greatly pervaded by psychological abuse and emotional oppression, was positively upset once one of the priests, Father Leboutillier, introduced him to the world of hockey, which soon become his sole means of inclusion and identification, mental well-being and acknowledged self-worth in his life. It is though universally acknowledged how, for every medal, there are always two inevitably opposite
The most memorable moment in hockey history came thirty-four years ago with the 1980 Miracle on Ice. The Americans defeating the dominant Soviet team at the Olympics was not only an important triumph for USA Hockey, but for the entire nation. Contrary to popular belief, the underdog win was not only the result of a miracle; it was also the result of a hard-working team led by Coach Herb Brooks. With increasingly negative views on the position of the United States in the Cold War, the Miracle on Ice and the gold medal win lifted the spirits of the nation and brought hockey into the American spotlight.
As long as there have been sports, there has been violence in them. Ice hockey, particularly due to its increasing popularity as a professional sport, has brought up several ethical issues regarding the act of fighting in hockey. There are strong arguments for both sides of this present problem in the world of hockey. Numerous male athletes, including children as young as nine years of age, have suffered injuries as an outcome of fighting and it should be considered if it should be part of a sport that very young people grow up with (Brust, Leonard, Pheley & Roberts, 1992).On the other hand, fights create excitement and the sport of hockey might grow in terms of popularity, making the problem of fighting in hockey complex and difficult to resolve (“Towards An Explanation Of Hockey Violence: A Reference Other Approach”). Even though hockey is known to be a very aggressive and fast-paced sport, the unsportsman-like action of fighting in hockey cannot longer be tolerated.
For every Olympic games, there always seems to be some type of scandal or drama. The 2002 Winter Olympic games in Salt Lake City proved itself to be full of this excitement and controversy. That year the scandal appeared in one of the most popular events, figure skating. The competition was between the Russian and Canadian figure skating pairs. The Russians showed a performance full of technical difficulty without pulling it off completely. Their performance was marred by simple mistakes. On the other hand, the Canadian pair performed a piece full of emotion, and while not as technically difficult as the Russians, more thorough and precise in their landings and jumps. After their performance the audience and the television commentators all believed they were the gold medallists. However after their score went up, they were sorely put in second place. As it turns out a French judge exchanged votes with a Russian judge so that the Russians would win the event. Since this happened, it has opened up the doors to the world of figure skating and informed the public of its corruptness. What people need to notice is that judges exchanging votes is only one part of the problem and how well a person actually performs the techniques on the ice is only one part of the judging. In an article published in Newsweek right after the scandal was exposed the author states, "For ages figure skating has attracted ridicule for letting a competitor's nationality, make-up, costume, and choice of music seem to count as much as the athleticism and grace." (Begley 40) As it stands now in 2010, it looks as though no one has learned a lesson from this event or article. Judges who make deals before competitions and get caught do not suffer any harsh consequences. They continue to practice unsportsmanlike conduct while judging. In my movie (as yet to be titled) I hope to address not only the fact that judges make deals ahead of time, but that certain skaters are discriminated by their race and sexuality as well as for arbitrary reasons.
Both Lacrosse and Ice hockey are two sports that share similar aspects. One example would be that they both require plenty of athletic prowess, as well as countless hours of training and practice to master. The high amount of contact in both sports enables a player to become both physically and mentally “tough”. Lacrosse has grown to its highest level of popularity it has ever reached over the last ten years. Ice hockey has seen a steady climb in its popularity over the past 25 years making it one of the most popular sports in not only Long Island, but all across the U.S. However, there are many differences as well, and we should not overlook the fact that there are plenty of distinctions between the two great sports. Many of which are the main reasons that these are obviously two separate sports.
It’s Saturday Night, the crowd gone wild with an epic hit on the opposing team. The occasional drunk sitting next to you, as your kids enjoy delicious Dipping Dots. Right as the momentum is swinging towards the home team, a penalty is called. A powerplay opportunity is awarded to the defending team. With the home team fighting with all their might to defend from a goal, down 4 on 5, they run around like chickens with their heads chopped off, trying to get the puck out of their zone. Then when everything seems to simmer down, a fight breaks between the bulkiest guys on each team, punches being thrown, blood spattering across the ice. In hockey today, there are two main leagues in the United states: the NHL, and USA Hockey. Just like in any game, there are basic rules that must be followed. In these two leagues there are similarities and differences in basic “golden” rules, benefits from playing, and the official’s code of conduct.
Ice hockey, just like any sport, requires both physical and mental skills in order for the athlete to perform to the best of their ability. Positions in ice hockey include the goaltender, wingers, centers, and defensemen. Each position requires different skills in order to succeed in the role and perform together as a team. There are three zones of play, the defensive, offensive and neutral zones, where players are expected to execute different strategies based on their position on the team. Physical conditioning and developing psychological abilities gives players a competitive edge.
March 8th, 2004 was supposed to be nothing more than a competitive and action packed regular season hockey game between feuding rivals, the Colorado Avalanche and the Vancouver Canucks. The game slipped away from the Canucks, with the Avalanche up 6-2 heading into the third period. The heated contested already had its fair share of fighting majors, but an incident that happened late in the third period shocked the more than 18,000 fans in attendance at Rogers Arena, the hockey community, and North America. After failing to instigate a fight with Avalanche forward Steve Moore, Todd Bertuzzi of the Vancouver Canucks grabbed the back of Moore’s jersey, landed a vicious punch to the back of Moore’s head, before slamming him face first on the ice and falling on top of him. Moore had to be helped off the ice on a stretcher, and has never returned to the NHL. Bertuzzi, on the other hand, was suspended for 20 games by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, and is still playing in the NHL for the Detroit Red Wings. This is one of many examples of deviance in sports, and how a win-at-all costs mentality can drive athletes to act in extreme manners. As a result of the growing commercialization of sports, athletes are socialized at young ages to believe that winning is everything, and that stopping at nothing will help you succeed. Athletes will do almost anything to gain the upper hand in their respective sports, whether it is through engaging in excessive on-field violence or through the use of performance enhancing drugs, excessively committing themselves to their sport, or by violating league rules and policies. In sports, deviance is viewed in a different light than in the outside world. As professional athletes strive towards conforming to spor...
Not only do sports offer many opportunities, but they also create an “illusion of innocence.” On the field, the players are the stars of the show. They are the best. They are the role models. They are innocent. All the spectators look at these players as if they are superheroes when they are
It all began with a childish game of jumping out of a tree into a river, a test of guts and will. All fun and games until that summer day when the star athlete is ready to jump out while his best friend follows him up the tree to jump next. The branch is shaken slightly, and suddenly the schoolÕs top athlete is lying on the ground with a broken leg. This event seems so small and feeble, but it will soon not only tear a friendship apart, but the whole school, as well.
Statsky also makes another faulty assumption, which is that competition is an adult imposition on the world of children’s play. She says in her article, “The primary goal of a professional athlete – winning – is not appropriate for children” (629). Children compete to win in the same way that adults do, and they do so on their own without any adult pressure. Common playground gam...
When you think of hockey, you would think of people getting in fights or skating. To even play hockey you need to skate well enough to protect yourself from other people. Theses skates are 2.9 mm or 0.115 inches thick, skating is more tiring than running and they require different muscles. You have to be tough enough to take hits, block shots, or someone hitting you with a hockey stick. The puck you play with is 1 in thick and 3 inches in diameter. You have to hit the puck with a hockey stick, the blade is 12.5
William Faulkner brings all aspects of the game to life by going beyond the game itself, and immersing the readers into the intricate details that are often overlooked by most spectators. While spectators and televised sports commentators focus on the literal game itself, the points and teams, Faulkner describes the “kaleidoscopic whirl” of motion, the grace of the players and the designs they carve into the ice. He goes beyond the typical description of skates and hockey sticks, depicting them as “knife blades of skates” and “deft sticks which could break bones.” Faulkner, through this fluid and detail oriented writing, portrays the game of hockey in a way most people fail to see.
Eitzen, D. Stanley. (1999). "Sport Is Fair, Sport Is Foul." Fir and Foul: Beyond the Myths and Paradoxes of Sport.
A majority of the census views skiing as the sport of heavy winter coats, pounds upon pounds of equipment, and shivering in the frosty winds on the ski lift. In addition to this, flying down the mountains at high speeds is also associated with the addictive adrenaline rush along with bolting down couloirs, dropping cliffs and jumping out of helicopters into 3 feet of powder. To the everyday folks who fall in love with the sport, skiing is surely much more than that. Skiing is a communion with nature and spirit, and the real essence of skiing is the personal relationship that these selected develop with the experience. To the Scandinavian society, skiing is more than a sport, serving both political and civil roles. It cannot be detached from the ideological and social contexts of the time, especially nationalism.