Do the Paralympic Games empower the disability sport community? Like many other contemporary sporting institutions, the Paralympic Games have made the transition from pastime to spectacle, and the profile of athletes with disabilities has been increased as a result. This book reviews the current status of the Paralympics and challenges the mainstream assumption that the Games are a vehicle for empowerment of the disabled community. Using ethnographic methods unique in this area of study, P. David Howe has undertaken an innovative and critical examination of the social, political and economic processes shaping the Paralympic Movement. In The Cultural Politics of the Paralympic Movement he presents his findings and offers a new insight into the relationship between sport, the body and the culture of disability. In doing so he has produced the most comprehensive and radical text about high performance sport for the disabled yet published. P. David Howe is Lecturer in the Sociology of Sport at Loughborough University. He is also a four-time Paralympian and former Athlete’s Representative to the International Paralympic Committee.

Do the Paralympic Games empower the disability sport community? Like many other contemporary sporting institutions, the Paralympic Games have made the transition from pastime to spectacle, and the profile of athletes with disabilities has been increased as a result. This book reviews the current status of the Paralympics and challenges the mainstream assumption that the Games are a vehicle for empowerment of the disabled community. Using ethnographic methods unique in this area of study, P. David Howe has undertaken an innovative and critical examination of the social, political and economic processes shaping the Paralympic Movement. In The Cultural Politics of the Paralympic Movement he presents his findings and offers a new insight into the relationship between sport, the body and the culture of disability. In doing so he has produced the most comprehensive and radical text about high performance sport for the disabled yet published. P. David Howe is Lecturer in the Sociology of Sport at Loughborough University. He is also a four-time Paralympian and former Athlete’s Representative to the International Paralympic Committee.

'Whannel is a foundational figure in the study of sports and the media. ...For 20 years his writing has set a high standard ...and it remains an inspiration to many' - Toby Miller, Professor of Cultural Studies, New York University, USA Garry Whannel’s text Blowing the Whistle: The Politics of Sport broke new ground when it was first published in 1983. Its polemical discussion brought sports as cultural politics into the academic arena and set the agenda for a new wave of researchers. Since the 1980s sport studies has matured both as an academic discipline and as a focus for mainstream political and public policy debate. In Culture, Politics and Sport: Blowing the Whistle, Revisited, Garry Whannel revisits the themes that led his first edition, assessing their 1980s context from our new millennium perspective, and exploring their continued relevance for contemporary sports academics. This revisited volume will appeal to undergraduate students and researchers in sports and cultural studies. Garry Whannel is Professor of Media Cultures and Director of the Centre for International Media Analysis at the University of Bedfordshire. His previous books include Media Sports Stars: Masculinities and Moralities, Fields in Vision: Television Sport and Cultural Transformation, Understanding Sport (co-authored with John Horne and Alan Tomlinson) and Understanding Television (co-edited with Andrew Goodwin), all published by Routledge.

This multivolume set is much more than a collection of essays on sports and sporting cultures from around the world: it also details how and why sports are played wherever they exist, and examines key charismatic athletes from around the world who have transcended their sports. • Nearly 900 entries cover most aspects of sport from around the world • Contributions from more than 200 distinguished scholars, such as Mark Dyreson, Henning Eichberg, Malcolm MacLean, S.W. Pope, and Rob Ruck • Entries on players, stadiums, arenas, famous games and matches, major scandals, and disasters • Lists of Olympic medalists for all events since 1896 as well as lists of winners of major events such as the FIFA World Cup and MLB World Series • Further reading selections provide direction for in-depth analysis of each event, sport, personality, or issue discussed

The Paralympic Games is the second largest multi-sport festival on earth and an event which poses profound and challenging questions about the nature of sport, disability and society. The Paralympic Games Explained is the first complete introduction to the Paralympic phenomenon, exploring every key aspect and issue, from the history and development of the Paralympic movement to the economic and social impact of the contemporary Games. Now in a fully revised and updated second edition, it includes new material on hosting and legacy, Vancouver 2010 to Rio 2016, sport for development, and case studies of an additional ten Paralympic nations. Drawing on a range of international examples, it discusses key issues such as: • how societal attitudes influence disability sport • the governance of Paralympic and elite disability sport • the relationship between the Paralympics and the Olympics • drugs and technology in disability sport • classification in disability sport. Containing useful features including review questions, study activities, web links and guides to further reading throughout, The Paralympic Games Explained is the most accessible and comprehensive guide to the Paralympics currently available. It is essential reading for all students with an interest in disability sport, sporting mega-events, the politics of sport, or disability in society.

This handbook offers an important and timely contribution to the interdisciplinary field of Olympic studies. It brings together for the first time in a single volume a complete analysis of current and future economic, commercial, socio-political, cultural and governance challenges facing both the Olympic and Paralympic Games, their athletes and institutions. The book presents new research and broad surveys exploring pressing debates, challenges and possible solutions surrounding the modern Olympic and Paralympic Games, across diverse socioeconomic and political contexts. Featuring chapters written by leading scholars, athletes and administrators from a range of disciplines and backgrounds, the handbook is divided into four main areas: athletes, business, governance and socio-cultural issues within the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Examining key themes, theories and new emerging issues within the field, the book offers expert insights into every major topic related to the Olympic and Paralympic Games, including doping, integrity, athletes’ rights, culture, nationality, sponsorship, branding, governance, sports policy and law, marketing, social media, technology, e-sports, politics, ethics, international relations, legacy and impact. The only up-to-date handbook to reflect the true breadth and depth of this international field of research, the Routledge Handbook of the Olympic and Paralympic Games is a landmark publication for all students and scholars of sport studies, as well as those working in sport business, media, event management and administration, economics, marketing, management, politics, Olympic studies and cultural studies. It is also an important resource for sport management practitioners and sports officials.

This interdisciplinary text examines the sports-Christianity interface from Protestant and Catholic perspectives. In addition to a systematic review of literature, the contributors, who include many of the pioneers in the field, address a wide range of topics. These include biblical athletic metaphors, disability, evangelism, professionalism and celebrity, humility, the Vatican's perspective on sport and genetic enhancement technologies.

This interdisciplinary volume, the first to focus on the collective East Asian Olympic experience, reveals the Games' important role in the creation of a modern Asian identity in a world—and a global sporting culture—still dominated by the West.

Sport is often at the centre of battles for rights to inclusion linked to class, race and gender, and this book explores struggles centred on disability in different cultural settings in Europe, North America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. It challenges oversights and assumptions about the ‘normal’ body, and describes how individual and organizational transformations can occur through sport. The abilities of a person are recognised and placed centre stage - instead of the individual being forgotten, excluded, or placed at the margins simply because they have a disability. National, regional and global change is part of the shift to the rights based approach reflected in the 2006 UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Making sport inclusive affects the accessibility of facilities, funding, the media, policies, programs, organisations, sponsors and spectators, and at the same time changes the cultural values of the wider society. It also raises issues about competition access and eligibility for ‘different’ and technologically enhanced ‘cyborg’ bodies, and for those most socially disadvantaged. Addressing these questions which ultimately touch on the real meaning of sport can lead to profound changes in people’s attitudes, and how sport is organized locally and globally. Growth in the influential global organisations of the Paralympic Games, Special Olympics and Deaflympics is examined, as is the approach to disability in sport in both advantaged and resource poor countries. The embodied lives of persons with disabilities are explored utilizing new theoretical models, perspectives and approaches. This book was previously published as a special issue of Sport in Society.

Physical cultural studies (PCS) is a dynamic and rapidly developing field of study. This handbook offers the first definitive account of the state of the art in PCS, showcasing the latest research and methodological approaches. It examines the boundaries, preoccupations, theories and politics of PCS, drawing on transdisciplinary expertise from areas as diverse as sport studies, sociology, history, cultural studies, performance studies and anthropology. Featuring chapters written by world-leading scholars, this handbook examines the most important themes and issues within PCS, exploring the active body through the lens of class, age, gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, (dis)ability, medicine, religion, space and culture. Each chapter provides an overview of the state of knowledge in a particular subject area, while also considering possibilities for developing future research. Representing a landmark contribution to physical cultural studies and allied fields, the Routledge Handbook of Physical Cultural Studies is an essential text for any undergraduate or postgraduate course on physical culture, sports studies, leisure studies, the sociology of sport, the body, or sport and social theory.