The ethics of sport

[Slut_boy]

Our national sports are rugby (in winter) and cricket (in summer). The players at national level are national heroes. We learned this week that our national cricket captain has alledgedly been doing business with gambling bookies and, so the allegation goes, he received large amounts of money to throw matches. Obviously there are legal issues. He may be extradited to face charges in India and if convicted then he mayeven go to jail.

I was wondering whether any of you know of anything similar having happened in your country - in particular I was wondering whether apart from the obvious sport banning, whether criminal charges were ever successfully pinned on a sportsman for 'cheating'.

 

[Xander]

There has, not to my knowledge, been any cheating or foul sportsmanship in our national sport, Soccer. Neither in the other sport Handball.

However, there was a big hype over here about bicycles when a Dane won Tour de France.
I have only oe thing to say. EPO.
A drug used to increase you performance.
The entire sport has more or less been disabled by the drug. And the teams fall like leafs, when one of their riders MAYBE has used the drug.
No one has been convicted for anything yet though.

 

[Sonora]

There have been some ethics problems in the US. One is the White Sox (or as they became known after, the Black Sox), scandal around 1920 or so. I'm sure that somebody will come in with the details, but it seems like there was jail time involved in this. Baseball player Pete Rose got jail time for allegdly betting on baseball while playing. I'm sure that there are more details to this that hopefully someone will clear up. There have also been problems in college sports. One that I remember recently is some Northwestern University players getting in trouble for shaving points and there was another school several years ago, but I don't remember which school (SMU maybe?). Are you wanting to include Olympic-type sports (running, swimming, weightlifting, etc.)? There are many, many examples there. Probably the most famous would be the Ben Johnson steroid scandal at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

 

[Sammyjo]

OMG!!!
There is so much crap going on that no one would even believe half of it.

At one of our colleges, someone has recently has been caught cheating (selling or writing papers) for the basketball team.

And I know lots of stuff happens with pro teams, in addition to what was mentioned above.

Of course, you have the high school coaches molesting the student athletes. Hell, high school teachers in general getting it on with the students.

Mothers killing cheerleaders in order for THEIR daughters to make the team...

blah, blah, blah...

There is a lot of "crime" in sports. Of course, with our twisted society, things will only get worse.

SJ

 

[Plumed_serpent]

Soccer/Football is our national sport here in the UK and is widely seen as corrupt. Illegal payments to agents and mangers is the main problem, but in recent seasons we have been plagued by the kinds of betting scandals that South African cricket is currently embroiled. Fottball is seen as governed solely by the cash nexus.

 

[ZULUBOY]

Well, SB,......yes. BOTH my countries (so to speak)! The difference there is that the man is immediately sacked. Here, promotion seems in order.....Vasbyt!

 

[Slut_boy]

Thanks for the replies, but I am more interested in the criminal implications. I know of plenty of examples where people cheat and get banned - but that kind of cheating won't land the sportsman in jail because there has been no crime.

But in this case there has been a crime. The crime is 'fraud' or 'conspiracy to commit fraud' because there were gambling bets on the result. The result was no longer a "gamble" in the sense that the outcome was uncertain - in fixing the result you have removed the "chance" element. In other words the fraud being committed is on the gambling public and not on the sport.

Do you know what I mean? So that is the difference between this case, and say that of Ben Johnson. I want to know if anyone has ever gone to jail before. Sonora gives the example of Pete Rose - thanks I'll check it out. Any others come to mind?

 

[Greg Lee Hunt]

slutboy,

There were trials in 1923 after the notorious "Black Sox" scandal involving gamblers and some noted baseball players of the time. The episode has been memorialized in several films, I'm sorry but I've forgotten the names. I'm certain someone on the BB will know them. Several of the prominent figures in "Blacksox" scandal including Arnold Rothstein, a gambler (with criminal connections) and Chicago White Sox Star "Shoeless Joe Jackson" were convicted and sent to jail. Jackson and several other players were banned from playing in the major leagues forever.

Today I read an article in the newspaper about an Amateur Athletic Union 'coach' who is being indicted for illegally paying money to college athletes (basketball players). His actions threatened the eligibility of several prominent players most notably at UCLA and St Johns University last season. Though I can't prove it, my feeling is that this practice is widespread. This indictment may just be the tip of the iceberg. The debate over this latest 'scandal' is likely to elicit a wider discussion on 'amateurism' in sports, particularly as it affects college athletes.

I hope this helps.

[This message has been edited by Greg Lee Hunt (edited 04-14-2000).]

 

[Will]

Pete Rose didn't go to jail for betting on baseball, he went to jail for tax evasion. No players involved in the "Black Sox" scandal faced jail time, although it ended two Hall of Fame careers (Shoeless Joe Johnson and Eddie Cicotte). Lately there have been scandals at Northwestern University and Arizona State University where athletes have been tried for fixing games and I think some have recieved jailtime. As far as any professional athletes recieving jailtime for cheating or fixing games, I don't believe that has ever happened in the U.S.

p.s. Hal Chase was an ex- baseball player by the time of the "Black Sox" scandal. He was involved in setting it up and may have been sent to jail, but he was out of baseball at that time.

[This message has been edited by Will (edited 04-14-2000).]

 

[Skibum]

It is starting to appear that professional athletes in The US are less and less deserving of respect. I think that some of this can be attributed to the fact that there is very little done to restrain active young men who are told every day that they are the greatst thing since the napkin. We pay them enormus amounts of money to play what is, in effect, a childs game, then we act surprized when they demonstrate immaturity off the playing field.

We have seen many sports "heros" proven to be altogether less than heroic in their personal lives: Mike Tyson, Lawerence Taylor, Latrell Spreewell, Ray Carrruth(sp?), and just today, Bamm Morris. All of these men have shown themselves to be flawed, and I believe that the astronomical paychecks and fan adoration have something to do with it. From an early age we treat gifted athletes differently from other people, and make exceptions for them, leading to all kinds of problems later.



[This message has been edited by skibum (edited 04-14-2000).]

 

[John1965]

Well we have two NFL players up on Murder charges. They couldn't nail Pete Rose. Other Athelets have gone to jail for drugs. In South America they just shoot you if you don't play well and in China you go to jail for sucking at the Olympics.

 

[Skibum]

Wasn't there a war between two countries in South America over a soccer game?

 

[Sonora]

Quarterback Art Slichter (sp?) is another one that had gambling problems. Does anybody know the results of some of the inquiry into his gambling? Again, I'm thinking jail time, but it might have been for something else as was Rose's time for tax evasion.

 

[Weird Harold]

Originally posted by skibum:
Wasn't there a war between two countries in South America over a soccer game?

It's commonly called the 'soccer war', but the soccer games had nothing to do with it. It was over disputed borders in the amazon basin, and just happened to break out after the deciding game of a three game series.

 

[RonG]

Originally posted by Sonora:
Quarterback Art Slichter (sp?) is another one that had gambling problems. Does anybody know the results of some of the inquiry into his gambling? Again, I'm thinking jail time, but it might have been for something else as was Rose's time for tax evasion.

Art Schlichter is a sad case of a compulsive gambler. He did end up doing a couple of jail terms for gambling and tax evasion. The last time was extremely sad since he had started to get his life in order and was hosting a talk radio sports show, only to have it all snatched away again.

 

[Golden]

I'm vague on the detail but Tony Swan and 1 or 2 others, soccer players in the UK for Sheffield Wednesday? West Bromwich Albion .... ? Anyway - went to jail for match fixing. About 1965.

Couple of jockeys were on criminal charges recently but cases dismissed.

Britain's most famous jockey Lester Pigott was of course jailed for tax evasion - a la Capone ....

 

[ZULUBOY]

Hello, SB!

Just thought you'd like a little fire in your suitcase! LOL.

Hey, at least we won the cricket; maybe there is life after HGate!

 

[Slut_boy]

Thanks for the replies to this thread all of you who contributed. I am sorry that it has taken so long for me to respond - been a little hectic around here for me lately.

I will definately follow up on some of the stuff said here - thanks a million. Oh, yeah Zuluboy it was a sweet victory indeed. I am looking forward to the return series in Australia in August (...I think August).

 

[Magic Merlin]

Here we seem to place so much importance on the professional athelete. They make more money in one year than most people make in a lifetime. And then they complain about how they are mistreated and misunderstood. Our society seems to idolize and reward the entertainers and atheletes. And when you think about it what value do they add to our society?

Very little!!

Teachers, nurses and other care givers, firemen, police aren't they the ones that take care of our children (our future), of us? Aren't they the ones that are really of value to us and our society?

Sports have become a joke in the USA. I lose more interest each day in my favorite sports.

Sorry for blowing off steam here. I just wonder sometimes what our lives would be like if we had our priorities in the right place.