Why we choose to watch sports

FREDERICTON (CUP) – I love sports, and always have. For as long as I can remember, sports have been a big part of my life. From first watching and playing them, to now writing about and studying them, there has never been a time when sports haven’t been important to me.
Up until last week though, I never stopped to think why I consider sports to be so important.
On the surface, it seems absurd. Rather than focusing on things that have a direct effect on our lives, sports fans spend an inordinate amount of time watching people put a puck into a net or hit a ball with a stick.
In fact, many of us will spend hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars for this privilege to watch other people exercise.
Why do we do this? It can’t be solely for the entertainment value, as there are hundreds of other forms of entertainment that are cheaper and easier to access.
Is it because we look up to the athletes and individuals involved in the games? Somehow, I doubt that’s it. More often than not, these days were confronted with stories of athletes acting out and not behaving as public figures should.
Often times, when watching or reading current sports coverage, I wonder if we’re really covering sports at all, and I’m reminded of a quote from Aaron Sorkin’s fictional TV show, Sports Night, “Look, I got into this ’cause I liked getting people to like sports. And I’ve turned into a PR man for punks and thugs. Any atrocity, no matter how ridiculous or hideous or childish, it doesn’t matter. I make it sports.”
That quote from actor Peter Krause’s character was first broadcast 10 years ago last month – and if anything, the state of the sports world has only worsened.
Instead of stories about thrilling come-from-behind victories and tales of late round draft picks overcoming the odds and becoming all-stars, we’re presented with stories about athletes being convicted of assault or worse crimes.
Why do we support these teams and athletes then? If one of the prevailing opinions about sports is that it is filled with nothing but “punks and thugs” as Krause’s character says, then by spending time and money on sports, aren’t we just encouraging this kind of behaviour?
I don’t think that we are, and that’s because the vast majority of people involved with sports are good people that just happen to have their careers play out in the public eye.
We usually only hear about the misbehaving athletes because they are the exception to the rule, and the nature of the media is to report on the extraordinary, not the everyday routine.
If it’s not purely for entertainment value, and it’s not because we look up to the athletes, then why do we invest so much time into sports?
It’s human nature.
That may seem like an outrageous statement, but as long as there have been people there has been some form of sport or athletic competition. Whether it’s in organized events or simple play between children, there are elements of sports that are ingrained into us, and sports are how we exercise these elements of our personalities.
Since sports have always played an important part in human history, especially the development of different societies, it really bothers me when people marginalize sports.
In the grand scheme of things, of course sports aren’t as important as things like national defence and health-care issues. But, we are far too quick to dismiss the importance of sports in our society.
This attitude is surprisingly prevalent in the sports media, and I think it comes from a desire to be seen as not taking ourselves too seriously; that we realize there are more important issues than sports in the world.
However, sports are a much larger part of our culture that we sometimes believe them to be.
It’s time to stop pretending that sports don’t matter. They do. As long as we keep them in perspective we should celebrate the good parts of sports and give them the proper respect and attention they deserve.