Travesty of sport

The major rationale behind the staging of global sporting events such as the Olympic Games and other international sports championships is to integrate regional and international communities in the spirit of friendship and international understanding. Sport rises above and displaces any major or minor historical traumas of past military battles. It puts to rest historical skeletons and unhappy complexes.

The most notorious sport comment of the 20th century appeared in a prestigious English newspaper on the eve of the football World Cup final in August 1966, when England met Germany at the historic Wembley Stadium. As Germany were the favourites, the editorial offered some respite: "And if perchance on the morrow, Germany should beat us at our national game, let us take some consolation that twice we have beaten them at theirs". Such utter disregard of the major tenets of sport, namely Sport for a "World of Peace and International Understanding", not surprisingly brought the condemnation of all genuine sports adepts and, like the ill-fated albatross, it still hangs stinking around their necks.

Regrettably the popular press, with a massive circulation and appeal, is very often tempted to spurn the real significance of sport and pander to mass hysteria where soccer victories are equated with military victories. In the United Kingdom, to some commentators England versus Argentina in the 1980s on the soccer field was a re-enactment of the Falklands War. Of course such journalistic blunders have surfaced in other countries but unfortunately I am only familiar with the local and the British press.

It appears that in preparation for the Malta-Turkey football match scheduled on Malta's national day, some misguided Malta supporters are making frantic efforts to whip up nationalistic fervour by invoking Malta's victory against the Ottoman Turks about 450 years ago. This is a real travesty of sport and surely not conducive to better understanding among nations.

By their puerile efforts they have subordinated our favourite pastime to a battlefield with the potential to destroy sport since it may lead to violence. In this situation, where smouldering embers may erupt, all stakeholders, including the media, should take the necessary steps to defuse all attempts at siege re-enactments, racial chants, obscene and racial abuse. Malta in the European Union should never tolerate, let alone encourage, racist or anti-social behaviour.

At this point in time it is well to bring out the harsh dualism inherent in sport because "sport can be the best or worst of things," warned De Coubertine, the Founder of the Olympic Movement about a century ago. "It can occasion the most noble passion or the most vile... it can be chivalrous or corrupt, vile or bestial. One can use it to consolidate peace or to prepare for war." These heavy words are as valid today as when they were penned by Coubertin.

I feel I have done my task as a practising Olympian and now I hand over the responsibility to those at the helm adopting the words of the great Matthew Arnold, of Rugby fame:

"Peace, Peace is what I seek... and public calm,
Endless distinction of unhappy hates."

Mr Bugeja is the former general secretary of the Malta Olympic Committee.