Is good sportsmanship rapidly losing ground?
How recently did you see a golfer fling his club after a bad stroke? Or see a highly paid tennis player throw his racket to the ground, angrily hit a ball into the stands or challenge the referee? Or hear of an athlete accused of using performance-enhancing drugs, or see players fighting on the field? Sadly, we see these things all too frequently. Have we lost sight of de Coubertin’s ideals? Positive examples give us heart. One good example comes from those 1936 Berlin Olympics, where Jesse Owens had won three gold medals and was competing in the long jump. He had fouled twice with only three attempts allowed. The German champion came over to him and in broken English said, “Jesse, let me make a suggestion. I will place my towel a foot in front of the foul line and you can use this for your take-off. You should then qualify easily.” Owens took his advice, qualified and went on to win another gold. Owens recalled, “It was so gracious of him. After my victory he was the first one to gree
