International Sports Training Camps in Antalya Turkey
SOCIETY AND SPORT
The type, level of benefit and responsibility of participating in sports do not depend solely on the abilities and interests of the people of any society.Because of the public outlook on sports, the management and organization of sports are of great importance.Today, all countries of the world attach great importance to sport and the struggle to occupy the forefront in international sports organizations.
These results are considered an indicator of national dignity. However, there are always more losers than winners. Observing the constant successes of some countries, we see that sport is a part of the lifestyle of these societies.
Society defined sport as follows. Sport is a technical and physical effort that an athlete uses to win; at the same time, this is an aesthetic process based on competition for the audience; it is a mirror that reflects the contradictions and characteristics of this society as such. This definition is the most realistic definition made without taking into account other aspects of the sport from a social point of view. Because sport is a living social structure with its own social rules, values, symbols and interaction processes.
The sport forms the close relationship between its past and past of society. This strong interest comes from sport forming through the social processes. Due to this reason, the sport cannot be offline. In particular, this appears in the relationship of the society, changes and reforms. Sport is the rationally created and acting organizations with international laws, regulations and rules. However, they are still having the large and deep footprints of society where they live. That’s why, in order to discuss the relations between sport and society in a proper way, it is necessary to use the common sociological data in sports sociology.
Sociologists tend to distinguish between dynamic and static aspects of society. But to better understand society, it is important to remember that both these sides must be parallel. The society structure means regularity of its parts and units. When considering the society as combination of the main groups, we see the interdependence and regular relations of these main groups. The society structure consists of these dependent, connected and mutually responsible groups. From this point of view the static side of society is defined. With the society analyze the people status reveals clearly in the different subgroups, relations of the main groups and subgroups and the condition of subgroups in these relations and coordination of all main groups in the society. In modern industrial societies, the quantity and variety of sports types increased in accordance with the development of the level of the social division of labor and specialization. Even sport is a very large and complex industry. At the present time, it was recognized as a product with a large number of sport consumers. The sports fields become the preferred places to promote many products on the stadiums because of big number of TV watchers and readers of newspapers and magazines.
The sports clothes replaced common daily clothes, especially among young people. The educational institutions accepted the sport as an effective tool in education. To create a positive image in the society, the politicians try to visit the sports organizations and the awarding ceremonies. Governments start to care about sport and invest in sports events and organizations to prevent social disintegration and conversion of people to anarchy and terror. Today, the fast-growing technology gradually reduces a need in labor force, and therefore, capacity and stress from work and social environment, as well as stress from the circulatory and respiratory systems are some of the leading causes of death, especially in developed countries. Sport offers the solution of this danger for the modern people, creating a dynamical environment free of stresses of daily life and helps to preventative medicine in the issue of maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Besides this function of the sport, it is obvious the positive effect of people on the social and individual character of the development. Due to these reasons, the developed countries give great importance to sport and the physical education programs apply for children starting from the youngest age. In addition to the models of compliance and conflict in the social structure of the society, reducing riots, rejecting behavior and complying with norms, sport is one of the important factors aimed at the benefit of society and the creation of a peaceful society. In this respect, the sport provides a hope to reduce expenses for the healthcare, to prevent the losses of the labor force because of disease and to create a happy and peaceful society of healthy people.
Sport is for everyone. Each person regains its original life starting to engage the sport where he integrates with all people. Such slogans as “Sport is for everyone” and “Sport is for life” are known in the world and begin the spread all over the world. It is said in the 59th article of Constitution of 1982 that physical education of all age people is a duty of the government.
The following phrases are underlining the connection between sport and society and importance for the society from the different points of view.
Ataturk: "In order to be successful, it is necessary for the whole nation to understand the essence and value of sports, to show their sincere love and consider it their duty."
Pope II. Jean Paul: “You should try to convince people that sport is not really fun, and that these efforts are a very serious issue for humanity. Sport is a symbol that unites people, eliminates the separation of religion, faith and all kinds of human qualities”.
Noel Baker (UNESCO President of the International Council on Sport and Physical Rest): "You cannot show me a location or segment of human relations other than stadiums and sports events where people can understand that there is so much in common that they can find a common language which they speak, regardless of their mother tongue.
Andrew Strenk: “Obviously, sport is a very useful and effective political and diplomatic weapon to gain respectability for countries, to respond to various events and situations, to promote a country or system, to win or isolate certain countries from the community.
Baron Pierre de Coubertin: "The real duty of sports is to prepare youth for war."
Ataturk: “Sporting life and sport in the world are very important. Such an important sporting life is even more important for us because it is a matter of race. It is a matter of improving and developing the race”
José Kagigal: “In the propaganda game played by modern countries, sport is the most interesting element and the easiest way to explain to the masses their success by stepping over the language walls. Even those who do not speak a single word in English know what it means to make Bob Beamon jump in length of 8.90. The country's success in sports has now become an indicator of its development in other areas."
Antonio Salazar: "For forty years I ruled Portugal, a fiesta (holiday), a fadima (organized religion) and football"
Alex Nathan: “Our athletes have become sports soldiers with very distorted views on national pride and national dignity. Today, all over the world, international sport - a propaganda weapon that is openly or secretly used to solve international problems, is the goal of activating new methods and methods of psychological warfare that kindle feelings of nationalism. "
Spiro Agnew: “Sport is a tool that unites our sports community”
As seen, the sport has been recognized as an important segment in each country and each period. And it forms depending on social structure and political management of society where it happened.
Credit:
(*) Prof. Dr. Füsun Oztürk Kuter "Social Aspects and Sports"
