IndexSummaryProblem DescriptionConclusions and RecommendationsReferencesExecutive SummaryProfessional athletics appears to have inherent cultural issues that have gone somewhat unnoticed and unchanged for decades. The history of track and field is deeply rooted in Eurocentric, white, male-dominated beliefs and behaviors, unlike the sport's current demographics. Especially since the Americas and African nations (all with very different populations) dominate athletics, these values ​​must be left behind. The extensive control that World Athletics (the governing body of athletics) exercises over its athletes illustrates the concept of biopower. The changes to the Diamond League schedule are a prime example of the lack of progressiveness in the sport. If World Athletics wishes to successfully evolve beyond a Usain Bolt-centric marketing strategy, upsetting some of its current most successful athletes of all time is not the best way to start the journey. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayAthletics, as an event, is deeply rooted in the history of organized sport and the modern Olympic Games. The first modern Olympic Games, held in 1896, began the attempt to expand the sport to an international platform outside of Europe and the United States. One would have to speculate that the British Commonwealth was a major reason for the sport's current popularity. In 2010, the Diamond League competitive circuit was created as a way to give track and field a competitive season rather than the independent meet format it had operated under for so long. The prize money for winning the finals was one of the largest sums of money a track and field athlete could win, and the money invested in the organization began to be visible, when countries such as Qatar and Morocco began hosting meets . This is becoming a popular trend in athletics where Middle Eastern countries invest large sums of money in building state-of-the-art facilities for athletics events and in return get to host international meets such as world championships (there have held in Doha, Qatar in October 2019) that they never could or would host before. The controversy surrounding the 2020 Diamond League schedule made headlines recently and caused a stir in the sports community. It was announced that four events (200m, triple jump, discus throw and 3000m steeplechase) would all be completely removed from the Diamond League programme, apart from the odd competition in one or two mid-season meets. Many reasons have been given as to why these events were removed, but the main reason is that they have been the least popular in terms of television ratings in recent years. This newly compacted schedule is said to be better suited to television, as World Athletics is attempting to make the matches friendlier in prime time, hoping it will further pique the interest of viewers who don't normally watch track and field. After Usain Bolt retired, there was a huge hole left in the world of track and field as the star of the main event was not there to sustain the popularity. Now, World Athletics is trying to change the building blocks of the sport to make it more attractive. The unfortunate part of this idea is that by eliminating these events, the organization excluded 20% of the athletes who would have competed in the nextseason, as approximately 200-meter runners and nearly all discus throwers, triple jumpers, and steeplechase runners do not compete. in other events. The sport of track and field, having just lost Usain Bolt and seeking to raise his popularity to a higher level than ever before, faces challenges in how to accomplish this task. Athletes are the unfortunate party forced to pay the price for a difficult situation in managing sport, since they do not have the necessary representation to have a role in deciding their future. This article will examine the various cultures, beliefs and values ​​inherent in world athletics and propose ideas and potential reasons for the actions of athletics governing bodies. Description of the Problem Most of these recent changes to the sport's identity have occurred in the wake of Usain Bolt's retirement. Usain Bolt has been the superstar sprinter in the world of track and field for the last 10-15 years and has made it easy for World Athletics (IAAF at the time) to commercialize the sport. Major championships were scheduled around Bolt's events as he was successful. In the same way that Jordan and the Chicago Bulls dominated the NBA, Usain Bolt and his Jamaican relay team dominated track and field. No one since Bolt has truly stepped up and taken his place as the sport's top athlete. There are many Americans who are achieving results close to Bolt's level, but the fame and notoriety factor has been equally important to his success. All in all, Bolt's retirement began the downward spiral of track and field's notoriety in the world of sports, and so world athletics is now starting to exert its power to change the sport as it sees fit. The main concept of the course to which this problem refers is Biopower. Biopower is defined as the way in which a governing body controls the physical lives and experiences of its members through practice and constraints. First, track and field is already a very limited sport by nature. The way throwers are limited to a small 7 or 8 foot circle and relay teams are forced to run and pass the baton within certain confines is very controlling. Track and field athletes are expected to demonstrate the purest form of athletic ability such as strength and speed, but only if they follow the rules of the sport. I understand that the only way to truly measure success against another person is to put them both under the same conditions, and I'm not saying that doing so is wrong, however, some rules discriminate against certain athletes and their bodies. The size of the shot put circle forces tall throwers to shorten their stride across the circle. Additionally, the height of the hurdles discriminates against shorter athletes who would likely not be as successful due to physical disadvantage. Both elements of biopower (the discourse of the body as a machine and the body of the species of a population) are called into question in these limitations imposed on the body. Track and field, as it is dominated by Africans in distance events and The country, dominated by Caribbean Americans in sprint events, has some inherent racism rooted in its culture. Athletics is a European dominated sport. Between the mostly British commentary team (known for saying sexist and racist things), the mostly European governing body, and the consistently high ratings and interest from fans based in Europe, the xenophobic nature of many European countries often finds its way into the debate. sport. I'm not saying these are the main reasons behind any actions by World Athletics, as it would be quite obvious if any actions occurreddiscriminatory. However, the triple jump, 200 meters and steeplechase are all dominated by black athletes due to countries tending to be more successful in those events. Racism or discrimination is most likely not the reason behind the change in the Diamond League schedule, however, a historically European-led sport is likely to have racist tendencies, and other aspects of the sport could be heavily impacted by this fact. Therefore, the power that athletes possess in their sporting careers is immediately taken away from them due to these racist tendencies. Stereotypes such as biological superiority, primitiveness in sport and the nature of blacks, and the fixation that sport can save a black North American from hardship disempower these athletes and allow the governing body to reclaim and abuse it. Young's ideas about the animal-sport complex made me wonder if this complex could apply to human athletes. Young states that animals have been excluded from sports for much of history and that humans view them as competitors, but as lesser due to the speciesism of human culture. I think this point of view applies to all human athletes in general. Professional athletes playing their sport could be seen as circus animals based on a variety of things. For example, the layout of sports arenas (the stands are higher with the playing surface in the centre), betting on the results of matches and the fact that athletes are controlled by other people in the form of referees and all governing bodies they remove a certain amount of human characteristics from an athlete. And so all sports, and track and field in particular, have a tendency to portray athletes in animalistic ways. Track and field athletes display a level of pure athletic ability, such as speed and/or strength, unlike any other sport. Horse and dog racing are the closest and best comparison to track racing, thus offering evidence that humans are viewed as animals when competing in a purely athletic, skill-based event such as running, jumping, or throwing. The repercussions of eliminating certain events from the schedule include the potential loss of earnings for many athletes. Diamond League events provide consistently higher payouts to successful athletes than almost any track and field competition. Athletes are not only disappointed that they cannot compete in this major event, but the most talented athletes now have to give up some earnings that they surely would have received. Grossberg (1989) emphasizes that power structures social life in all its forms. Power, that is, the power possessed by the governing body, can shape structural inequalities into the limiting or productive image they desire. The glaring lack of fair treatment between events has been evident since track and field became a mainstream sport. As a pitcher, I have experienced the inequality described for many years. Cases such as not having people watch your event and only watching the sprints, being forced to throw outside the stadium due to lack of adequate infrastructure for field events, or not forming national teams because sprinters can compete in multiple events but the Most javelin throwers cannot be made to care about some of the ways in which throwers are sidelined by power structures. The same thing happens in professional athletics too. Often field events are not televised because there is always a track event that has viewing priority over a field event..2014-0140