Serious Sport

Trial-blazer and mentor, Professor J.A. Mangan is a distinguished scholar in the fields of sports history whose work has inspired a generation of historians and social scientists across the globe. His seminal book on athleticism and imperialism commanded attention and applause from a broad range of historians and social scientists across the globe. His seminal work on athleticism and imperialism commanded attention and applause from a broad range of historians. It opened new horizons of inquiry providing the field with a richly perceptive study of hegemony and patronage, of cultural assimilation and adaptation, and of the ways that power elites used sport for socialization, acculturation and social control. His later works continued to pose critical, sometimes controversial questions, providing new and provocative insights into the complex social issues involved in the development and diffusion of sporting activity. The geographical horizons of his work now span the globe. This volume is a fitting tribute to the scholarship and lasting accomplishments of a pioneer who has mentored - and continues to mentor - numerous young scholars internationally, simultaneously developing and maintaining high quality channels through which to disseminate sport history research. In appraising his scholarship the contributors to this collection demonstrate their debt to his vision and achievements. This volume was previously published as a special issue of The International Journal of the History of Sport

The study of sport tourism is on the cusp of moving from a descriptive phase of research into an analytical phase. Consequently, many academics and graduate students are searching for theories upon which to ground their work. This book draws upon theories and concepts from sociology and anthropology (the socio-cultural perspective), sport and tourism studies, and business studies. One of the dangers of a new area of study is that the body of knowledge is built on a range of seemingly unrelated studies. By grounding work in a theoretical perspective, future work can be linked to, and contribute to building a cohesive understanding of various aspects of sport tourism. This book is an edited collection written by some of the top scholars working in a particular domain throughout the world, providing a compendium of theories and concepts that can be used to frame research on various aspects of sport tourism. This volume was previously published as a special issue of the journal Sport in Society.

The university is a nerve centre of society. This glimpse behind the scenes of the laboratories, workshops and classrooms of KU Leuven reveal what preoccupies scientists today, and how their ideas and discoveries impact our world. This second annual series of lectures in English includes such highlights as J.J. Cassiman on Genetics and Genomics, R. Merckx on Food in Africa, G. Verbeeck on The Future of History, and a great deal more.

This volume provides important theoretical and applied insights into sport tourism. A collective work written by specialists in the field of sport tourism, it provides new insights into this rapidly expanding field, which is in constant change and challenged by globalization. The book is composed of four parts, each enclosing three chapters, including an initial introductory chapter. The first part of the book (re)thinks sport tourism in the globalized world; the second explores new challenges for global and local event sport tourism; the third section addresses issues related to sport tourism development in a globalized world; and the fourth part is dedicated to understanding participation in sport tourism activities. Altogether these chapters investigate some of the most important current research interests about sport tourism, and some of the challenges faced in a globalized world. As such, it represents a valuable reference for researchers, professors and professionals and an instructive text for students, providing an important understanding into this dynamic field. This book will interest academics dedicated to the study of sport tourism, events, management, and development, and will also be useful for professionals of public and private sector organizations operating within the field of sport tourism.

This book explores seriousness in practice in the unique sports context of contemporary women's flat track roller derby. The author presents a stimulating argument for a sociology of seriousness as a productive contribution to understandings of gender, organization and the mid-ranges of agency between dichotomies of voluntarism and determinism.

This book draws on literature, specifically on the writings of selected novelists and poets to widen an existing anti-sport discourse to include hitherto excluded voices from the world of literature. The book commences with a review of exiting pro- and anti-sport discourses and then proceeds to examine, in turn, the written works of five eminent authors, excavating from their writings their anti-sports rhetorics. These writers are Lewis Carroll (Charles Dodgson), Charles Hamilton Sorley, Jerome K. Jerome, John Betjeman and Alan Sillitoe. In its conclusion, the book draws together the broad themes discussed in the preceding chapters. Innovative in its approach to sport and literature and remarkable for its not having been previously explored in any depth, this book will be of interest to readers from both social sciences and humanities backgrounds.

Sport has become more than a simple physical expression or game- it now pervades all societies at all levels and has become bound up in nationalism, entertainment, patriotism and culture. Now a global obsession, sport has infiltrated into all areas of modern life and despite noble ideals that sport stands above politics, religion, class, gender and ideology, the reality is often very different. These essays by leading academics and rising new talent consider the phenomenon of modern sport and its massive influence over global society. Together, this collection is also a tribute to the pioneering and inspirational work of Professor J.A. Mangan on the political, religious, class and gender-based aspects of modern sport, from academics greatly influenced by him and his writing. This book was previously published as a special issue of The International Journal of the History of Sport.

In 2008, as few in the world are unaware, China was host to the world via the Beijing Olympics. The world watched the metamorphosis of Beijing from insecure capital to confident metropolis but, aware of it or not, the world was also watching the symbolic assertion, via the Games, of a rising superpower. The Pacific Rim will be the stage on which China initially displays its new hegemonic intentions, aspirations and ambitions. Thus in Post-Beijing 2008, the political, economic and cultural impact of Beijing 2008 on the geopolitical future of the Pacific Rim will be discussed. This perspective, analysed by some of the most distinguished academic commentators from some of the world's leading universities who are closely associated with the Pacific Rim (East and West), is original in focus and the analysis is pregnant with political possibilities. This book was previously published as a special issue of the International Journal of the History of Sport.