The Appeal of Spectator Sport: Historical Reflections on Hans Ulrich Gumbrecht's In Praise of Athletic Beauty

摘要

In praise of athletic beauty makes a powerful case for the neglected role of the aesthetic in sport, which can be developed and nuanced by reference to the wider history of sport. Spectators have been driven by a complex mix of factors, including Gumbrecht's visual 'fascinations', which have combined in different ways at different times. History shows how the appeal of sport as a spectacle ranges from the aesthetic to the rational but remains for the most part rooted in a deep local and national attachments to territory.