Sport for the sportsmen
On the day of the big Iran-USA World Cup match, I have a few things to say about the politicization of sports.Yes, it's true that the world objects to the way Iran is treating its people. It killed 300 of them. I object too. I have left my Twitter profile green for what, nine years, in support of the Iranian people.
But those guys out there playing soccer are basically athletes who have done their best to perfect their skills over many years, and they have a right to be proud of their country, no matter what its faults are, same as our guys have a right to be proud of ours. I admit that nationalism is not always a great thing, and in this case, causes them to be nationalistic for a government that is less than ideal. But the same can be said for all of us. To me, this is the only kind of nationalism that is acceptable - pure sports fans wanting to win a match.
On a world scale, soccer talent starts at birth, but then is developed by constant playing and practising. In this regard Brazil and the African countries have an advantage, because their kids are out there in the street playing 24/7 while ours have more mundane concerns like video games. You have to admire that kind of skill, though, perfected over many hours of hard practice. I think it's a matter of respect to their devotion and intense practice that we back off on the political concerns and just let them play, let them show us how good they are at this particular skill. It's not about repression, or how a government handles dissent. It's about sports, and we should let it stay that way.
posted by tom @ 6:16 AM
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