Violence in sports

Encyclopedia : V : VI : VIO : Violence in sports

Violence in sports involves intentional aggressive violence. Competitive sports, such as football, basketball, and baseball may involve aggressive tactics, but actual violence in sports falls outside the boundaries of good sportsmanship. Contact sports such as American football, ice hockey, rugby union/league, boxing, wrestling, and water polo involve certain levels of physical violence, but include restrictions and penalties for excessive and dangerous acts of force. Violence in sports may include threats, verbal abuse, or physical harm and may be carried out by athletes, coaches, fans, spectators, or the parents of young athletes.

George Orwell once made the observation, "Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all rules and sadistic pleasure in witnessing violence: in other words it is war minus the shooting."

Contents

1 Causes
2 Cultural considerations
3 Types of violence

3.1 Violence by athletes
3.2 Verbal abuse
3.3 Fan violence
3.4 Parental violence
3.5 Ritual violence

4 Notable events
5 Prevention
6 References
7 See also

Causes

"Intermittent explosive disorder" may be a cause of violence. Some athletes may be genetically predisposed to violence or (particularly in male athlete cases) have unusually high testosterone levels. Animal behaviour ethology studies may also lend a clue, as athletes may resort to violence to establish territory.

In some sports, such as American football and ice hockey, traumatic brain injury, whose high incidence has only recently been realized, may also reduce players' emotional control. The National Football League and the National Hockey League now have procedures to facilitate the detection of concussion. Previous rivalry feelings between two competitors might also induce violence during a sporting event.

Cultural considerations

Some sport psychologists and sport psychiatrists have expressed concerns about the impact on children. Media sometimes broadcast unfiltered scenes of violence, sometimes showing shots over and over while the incident is a hot media topic. Critics worry that children may copy activities or become desensitized to violence.

Types of violence

Violence by athletes

Athletes sometimes resort to violence, in hopes of injuring and intimidating opponents. Such incidents may be part of a strategy developed by coaches or players. An example of a pre-arranged strategy is the 99-call used by the British Lions Rugby Union team in their 1974 tour of South Africa, as a pre-arranged all-out attack on the South African team if one of the South African players was deemed to have committed a violent infraction that had gone unpunished by the home referees. Upon hearing the team captain Willie John McBride's call of '99', each player would find the nearest opponent and attack him. This was based on the (correct) assumption that the referee would not dare to send off all the Lions if they all resorted simultaneously to violence.

In boxing, unruly or extremely violent behaviour by one of the contestants often results in the fighter breaking the rules being penalized with points taken off, or, in extreme cases, disqualification. Outlawed tactics in boxing include hitting the opponent on the back of the head, under the belly, during clinching, and to the back. Other tactics that are outlawed, but less seen, are pushing an opponent extremely hard to the floor, or hitting repeatedly after the round has ended.

Verbal abuse

Athletes, fans, parents, and coaches sometimes take part in verbal abuse, screaming at players, coaches, officials, and fans. In many sports, a certain amount of heckling is accepted and in many cases expected from fans, but this behavior can escalate to unacceptable levels. In European football, UEFA has had to warn a number of teams about racist chants from supporters, and on some occasions has fined individuals, clubs and national associations or forced them to play home matches at a neutral venue, or with no supporters allowed in the ground due to racist behaviour of supporters.

In sports that involve close marking of an opponent, or which leave opponents in close proximity for some time without them being directly involved in active play, banter, often becoming abusive, is widespread, especially in cricket and baseball.

Fan violence

Fans of the Minnesota Golden Gophers riot in the Dinkytown neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota after the Gophers won the 2003 Frozen Four

In both the stands and the streets, fans may resort to violence to express loyalty to a team, to release frustration with a team’s performance, or to intimidate opponents. Violence may also be related to nationalism or as an outlet for underlying social tensions. It is often alcohol-related. (See also: List of violent spectator incidents in sports)

Violence by supporters of sports teams dates back to Roman times, when supporters of chariot racing teams were frequently involved in major riots. A notable example of this is the Nika riots of 532.

Montreal Canadiens fans rioted on March 17, 1955, after Maurice Richard received a suspension.

The actions of English football hooligans and firms in the 1980s caused English teams to be banned from European competition for six years after the Heysel Stadium disaster in 1985. Although the level of football-related violence was significantly reduced in England after this event, in the recent Euro 2004 tournament, England were publicly warned that any violence by supporters at matches could result in the team's expulsion from the tournament. Many known hooligans were prevented from travelling to the tournament in Portugal. There was a collective sigh of relief from security experts in the USA when England failed to qualify for the 1994 FIFA World Cup. Alan Rothenberg (chairman of the World Cup organising committee in the United States in 1994) said:

There were three countries in the world whose presence would have created logistical and security problems, so we're very pleased they won't be coming: Iraq, Iran and England.

After Marvin Hagler knocked out Alan Minter in three rounds to win boxing's world Middleweight title at Wembley Arena in 1980, many of Minter's supporters began to throw beer cans, bottles and other objects to the ring. Both Hagler and Minter, along with their respective handlers, had to be escorted out by Scotland Yard.
In 1984, violence erupted outside of Tiger Stadium in Detroit after the Detroit Tigers defeated the San Diego Padres in the World Series. A well known photo from the riot shows a Tigers fan holding a World Series pennant in front of an overturned burning Detroit Police car.
In 1990, a match between Red Star Belgrade and Dynamo Zagreb was abandoned after ten minutes with thousands of fans fighting each other and the police. One of the Zagreb player was seen to kick a policeman, and after an hour long riot, the stadium was set on fire.
In 1993, Monica Seles was stabbed by a Steffi Graf fan during a changeover at a tennis match in Germany.
In 1994, Vancouver Canucks fans rioted in the streets of Vancouver after their team lost in the Stanley Cup finals.
During the 1994 FIFA World Cup, Colombia football (soccer) player Andrés Escobar accidentally scored an own goal in a match against the United States, a match which Colombia lost 2-1. On his return to Colombia, Escobar was confronted outside a bar in Medellín by a gunman who shot the player six times, killing him. The gunman reportedly shouted "¡Gol!" for each bullet fired.
Rioting Indian fans at the Eden Gardens stadium in Calcutta forced the end of the semi-final match between India and Sri Lanka during the 1996 Cricket World Cup. Fans started rioting when the home team, seemingly on the way to victory, underwent a dramatic batting collapse. Match referee Clive Lloyd brought the teams off the ground for their safety, then attempted to restart the match. When the fans remained throwing projectiles and damaging stadium facilities, the match was called off and awarded to Sri Lanka (who would go on to win the World Cup).
In 1998, Denver Broncos fans rioted in the streets of Denver after their team won Super Bowl XXXII. Near-riots happened when the team won the Super Bowl again the following year and after the Colorado Avalanche's Stanley Cup wins in 1996 and 2001.
A similar incident occurred in Oakland, California in 2003 when fans rioted and destroyed property after the Oakland Raiders loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl XXXVII.
In July 2000, 13 people were trampled to death in a riot at a 2002 FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Harare, Zimbabwe, after South Africa took a 2-0 lead over Zimbabwe.
On November 19, 2004, near the end of an NBA game between the Indiana Pacers and Detroit Pistons, a massive brawl erupted between Pacers players and Pistons supporters.
On April 12, 2005, the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal between intracity rivals AC Milan and Inter Milan was abandoned after Inter fans threw missiles and flares on to the pitch at the San Siro stadium, with AC Milan goalkeeper Dida hit by a flare.

Parental violence

The parents of athletes occasionally become violent. Some taunt or hit coaches, players, and other parents. Others bully their own children, lashing out as punishment or misguided encouragement. In 2000, hockey dad Thomas Junta of Reading, Massachusetts, was watching his 10 year old son at a summer ice hockey practice. Concerned about aggressive play, he yelled at coach Michael Costin of Lynnfield, Massachusetts. A fight ensued, spilling into the hallway. Junta, who was 100 pounds (45 kg) heavier, repeatedly punched Costin in the face, while holding him down with a knee to the chest. Junta's sons begged him to stop and another adult broke up the fight, but Costin died. Junta was later handed a six-to-10-year sentence for manslaughter.

Christophe Fauviau, the father of 2 promising French teenaged tennis players, pleaded guilty in court in 2006 to spiking the drinks of 27 of their opponents, over a three year period, with an anti-anxiety drug that causes drowsiness. One of the victims fell asleep at the wheel of his car after the match, crashed, and died from his injuries. Fauviau received an 8 year prison sentence.[link]

The South Park episode The Losing Edge comically explores parental violence in the context Little League baseball.

Ritual violence

High school, college, and even professional sports teams often include initiation ceremonies (known as hazing in the USA) as a rite of passage. A 1999 study by Alfred University and the NCAA found that approximately four out of five college US athletes (250,000 per year) experienced hazing.[link] Half were required to take part in alcohol-related initiations, while two-thirds were subjected to humiliation rituals.

Notable events

The most notable event in modern sport-related violence was the Heysel Stadium disaster, when 39 people died when a wall collapsed under pressure of Juventus supporters fleeing from 'football hooligans' supporting Liverpool F.C.

In the 6th century, rivalry between supporters of the Blue and Green chariot-racing teams in Constantinople, led to 30,000 deaths in the week of the Nika riots in 532.

Other notable events include

In 1975, cyclist Eddy Merckx was viciously punched by a spectator as he climbed the Puy-de-Dome in the Tour de France. Merckx, who had won the Tour de France five times previously and at the time was in the leader's yellow jersey, finished the stage barely able to breathe, and went on to finish the tour in second place overall.
Blood in the water water polo semi-final match between Hungary and Soviet Union at the 1956 Summer Olympics was stopped to diffuse a possible riot by the fans when a Russian player punched Hungary's Ervin Zador.
Tonya Harding’s attack on Nancy Kerrigan.
Mike Tyson biting Evander Holyfield's ear during their rematch.
On January 25, 1995, Manchester United striker Eric Cantona assaulted a fan during a game against Crystal Palace after said fan hurled racial slurs towards him. Cantona was banned for the remainder of the FA Premier League season.

Prevention

Specialists in preventing sports violence have recommended:

emphasizing sportsmanship among young players.
promoting positive sports role models.
banning or restricting the consumption of alcohol.
imposing tougher penalties for athletes who cause or aggravate an altercation.
banning unruly spectators from stadiums.
prosecuting both athletes and non-athletes in the criminal courts.

Some critics suggest that sport psychology professionals could also counsel athletes, but coaches, parents and athletes may balk at accusations of emotional damage.

While the availability of alcohol at sporting venues is often cited as a key reason for provoking violence, most clubs would be very reluctant to stop selling alcohol at matches because it may discourage some fans from attending, and profit from its sale can be considerable. Most clubs restrict the quantity of alcohol that can be purchased by fans and stop selling alcohol at some point before the end of the match. These restrictions may or may not be mandated by the liquor control board of the jurisdiction. Also, any alcohol will normally be sold in a plastic cup to prevent an unruly spectator from easily using the container as a missile. Since the Taylor Report in the early 1990s, alcohol may not now be consumed within view of the pitch in UK football stadiums.

In most sports, officials or referees impose penalties when athletes step outside the bounds of normal competitive play. Formal sporting organizations, such as the NHL, NBA, UEFA, sometimes impose suspensions, expulsions or fines.

In addition, precedents have been set in court wherein players are ordered to pay reparations for injuries caused during supposedly legal play. Former rugby league player Jarrod McCracken recently sued the Melbourne Storm organisation and former players Stephen Kearney and Marcus Bai for a "spear" tackle which allegedly ended his career. He was awarded Aus.$750,000 in damages which will be paid by the clubs insurers. Since then, a rugby league legislation change has been made, which will protect players from further litigation.