Violence in Sport (OCR GCSE Physical Education (PE)): Revision Note

Violence in sport

• Violence can be a common occurrence in sport

• Whilst violence is never condoned, there are some key reasons why it happens:

  • Due to the pressure to win and the importance of the result some performers will do anything at any cost

    • For example In 1994, Tonya Harding won her ice-skating championship after her main rival was attacked, putting her out of the competition. Harding and accomplices were later convicted with related charges and Harding was banned for life

  • Sometimes the nature of the game and emotional intensity causes instinctive responses which can be difficult to control

    • For example contact sports are more likely to lead to violence as media and the crowd cause over-intense 'psyching up' of players

  • Anger or frustration at poor officiating or a poor performance leading to losing a match or game

    • For example at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Taekwondo’s Angel Valodia Matos pushed the referee and judge before landing a kick that required the referee to receive stitches after being disqualified from his bronze medal bout

  • Some performers deliberately retaliate and attack others when they feel wronged as an act of seeking revenge

    • For example in the 1997 WBA Heavyweight championship fight Evander Holyfield’s ear was bitten off by opponent Mike Tyson after Holyfield dominated the early rounds of the fight

  • Performers can use violence to bring down others to enhance performance and improve their own outcomes

    • For example on lap 36 of the final race of the 1994 Formula 1 Championship, Michael Schumacher, despite having a damaged car, turned in sharply into Damon Hill who was trying to overtake causing a collision that put both cars out of the race. As a result both drivers failed to score and handed Schumacher the championship win by one point