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PART B
Texts
Interview:
High School Sports
Q: Steve, you graduated from high school in
Quincy, II, and afterwards went to school in
Germany for almost a year. As far as school sports
are concerned, do you think there is a great
difference between Germany and the U.S.A.?
A: Y e s , a large difference, actually. In Germany,
school sports mean P.E., whereas in the U . S . the
school sports program has a double role, with the
P.E. program on one side and organized
competitive sports on the other. In Germany, the
function of the competitive sports is taken over by
non-school sport clubs, which exist only in small
numbers in the U . S .
Q: Let's first talk about physical education or
P.E., as it is commonly called. What role does it
play in the curriculum?
A: Well, it's a requirement, which means that
every student must be enrolled in a P.E. course,
and the courses meet five times a week for one
hour a day.
Q: What kinds of sports are offered?
A: There's usually a period right at the beginning
of each semester where a general physical fitness
program is done, and, after that, the students get
to choose between various team and individual
sports ranging from basketball, football and
baseball to tennis, weight lifting and aerobics.
Q: Let's turn to competitive sports now. What
were the most popular teams at your school, and
how important were they for the school?
A: The biggest team at Q H S is by far the boy's
basketball team, and then the other teams are
heavily dependent on success. For instance, in the
last couple of years, the girls' volleyball team has
had some success, and, of course, that means a
more popular following for the team, although the
basketball team has always had a cult following,
through thick and thin.
Q: S o , obviously, the home games of the top
teams are the important events in the life of the
school, aren't they?
A: Y e s , they are. The basketball games attract a
large, diverse audience. They're played at the
senior high gym, and it's always packed to
capacity. Another thing, if the basketball team
were to go to the state tournament, the students
would be released from school early so that they
would have the opportunity to travel with the
team. And we can't forget the financial
implications: the games generate revenue for the
school.
Q: What other things beside the actual
competition on the field add to the atmosphere of
the game?
A: At the very beginning of the game, when the
players are introduced, the mascot from Quincy
comes out dressed as a blue devil. The high school
team is called the Blue Devils. He walks out with a
flaming pitchfork, and he goes around the gym,
which is divided into sections, and, with his back
to the crowd, he covers himself in his cape. All of a
sudden, he turns around, throwing open his cape,
and everybody in that section stands up and
cheers as loud as they can, with the student
section generating the loudest screams. On top of
that there's a band to add to the pre-game and
intermission carnival atmosphere, and there's the
omnipresent cheerleaders for the same purpose.
Q: What do you understand by cheerleaders?
A: These are girls, organized into squads, who
perform various chants and acrobatics to hype up
the crowd.
Q: Do they wear special clothes?
A: It's the lack of clothes more than the clothes.
They wear very provocative outfits.
Q: To what extent does the community become
250 AMERICA IN CLOSE-UP
1. continued
involved and interested in those games? Do you
remember incidents that would illustrate this
interest?
A: The community has always been very much
behind the basketball program at Q H S . For
example, when we went to the state tournament in
1 9 8 1 , a local printing company distributed
posters, and, driving around town, you could see
these posters with this huge blue devil staring out
at you on just about every house, and then many
Quincians went to the tournament to support the
team. And during the regular season, the games
are always broadcast on the radio, and, like I said
before, the gymnasium is always filled to capacity,
so there is a very big grass roots support, and that
multiplies when the team is successful. For
example, when a team returns from state tourney,
it goes to the mall, gets on board an old fire truck
and parades around town before going to the gym
for a victory rally, which is like a large party for the
players and fans.
Q: I guess the members of the top basketball
team are very popular with the other students and
with the girls.
A: Yeah, they're the stars of the high school
community, and, as long as they don't get too
arrogant, they're highly regarded by the major
portion of the high school population. The girls
find the guys to be quite sexy, but the guys at the
high school tend to lean toward the cheerleaders
rather than the basketball players.
Q: Imagine a student wants to join the basketball
team. How does he go about it?
A: Well, the basketball team in Quincy is very
selective, and there's quite a competition for
membership, but it's pretty well all decided by the
time the people are playing at the junior high. The
other teams are more open to entrance later on.
Q: What do they do to train?
High-school basketball game
A: As with any sport, a major portion of time is
devoted to callisthenics, just general physical
fitness, and the rest of the time is spent on tactics,
teamwork and basic skills.
Q: How would you describe the role of the
coach?
A: The coach is of major importance for the
team, as he determines their success to a large
extent. Coaches are hired by the school board as
coaches first and as teachers second. And when a
coach's luck runs out, he's gone as a coach, but
he's retained as a teacher. The community at large
stands behind the coaches when they have a
winning record; for instance, one fan in Quincy
gave a basketball coach a brand new Corvette, just
for being a good coach.
tourney: tournament.
SPORTS 251
SPORTS IN AMERICA:
COLLEGES & UNIVERSITIES
by James A. Michener
The athletic programs of American colleges and
universities have come in for a great deal of
criticism but there does not seem to be a chance
to alter the system.
James A. Michener gives background information
and comments on the problems.
F i r s t , t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s i s t h e o n l y n a t i o n i n t h e
w o r l d , s o f a r a s I k n o w , w h i c h d e m a n d s t h a t i t s
s c h o o l s l i k e H a r v a r d , O h i o S t a t e a n d C l a r e m o n t
a s s u m e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r p r o v i d i n g t h e p u b l i c w i t h
s p o r t s e n t e r t a i n m e n t . O u r s i s a u n i q u e s y s t e m
w h i c h h a s n o h i s t o r i c a l s a n c t i o n o r a p p l i c a t i o n
e l s e w h e r e . I t w o u l d b e u n t h i n k a b l e f o r t h e U n i v e r -
s i t y o f B o l o g n a , a m o s t a n c i e n t a n d h o n o r a b l e
s c h o o l , t o p r o v i d e s c h o l a r s h i p s t o i l l i t e r a t e s o c c e r
p l a y e r s s o t h a t t h e y c o u l d e n t e r t a i n t h e o t h e r c i t i e s
o f n o r t h e r n I t a l y , a n d i t w o u l d b e e q u a l l y p r e p o s t e r -
o u s f o r e i t h e r t h e S o r b o n n e o r O x f o r d t o d o s o i n
t h e i r c o u n t r i e s . O u r s y s t e m i s a n A m e r i c a n p h e n o -
m e n o n , a h i s t o r i c a l a c c i d e n t w h i c h d e v e l o p e d
f r o m t h e e x c i t i n g f o o t b a l l g a m e s p l a y e d b y Y a l e
a n d H a r v a r d a n d t o a l e s s e r e x t e n t P r i n c e t o n a n d
c e r t a i n o t h e r s c h o o l s d u r i n g t h e c l o s i n g y e a r s o f
College football
252 AMERICA IN CLOSE-UP
2. continued
t h e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y . I f w e h a d h a d a t t h a t t i m e
p r o f e s s i o n a l t e a m s w h i c h p r o v i d e d p u b l i c f o o t b a l l
e n t e r t a i n m e n t , w e m i g h t n o t h a v e p l a c e d t h e
b u r d e n o n o u r s c h o o l s . B u t w e h a d n o p r o f e s s i o n a l
t e a m s , s o o u r s c h o o l s w e r e h a n d e d t h e j o b .
S e c o n d , i f a n i d e a l A m e r i c a n e d u c a t i o n a l s y s t e m
w e r e b e i n g l a u n c h e d a f r e s h , f e w w o u l d w a n t t o
s a d d l e i t w i t h t h e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r p u b l i c s p o r t s
e n t e r t a i n m e n t . I c e r t a i n l y w o u l d n o t . B u t s i n c e , b y
a q u i r k o f h i s t o r y , i t i s s o s a d d l e d , t h e t r a d i t i o n h a s
b e c o m e i n g r a i n e d a n d I s e e n o t t h e r e m o t e s t
c h a n c e o f a l t e r i n g it. I t h e r e f o r e a p p r o v e o f c o n -
t i n u i n g it, s o l o n g a s c e r t a i n s a f e g u a r d s a r e i n -
s t a l l e d . C a t e g o r i c a l l y , I b e l i e v e t h a t o u r s c h o o l s
m u s t c o n t i n u e t o o f f e r s p o r t s e n t e r t a i n m e n t , e v e n
t h o u g h c o m p a r a b l e i n s t i t u t i o n s t h r o u g h o u t t h e r e s t
o f t h e w o r l d a r e e x c u s e d f r o m d o i n g s o .
T h i r d , I s e e n o t h i n g w r o n g i n h a v i n g a c o l l e g e o r
a u n i v e r s i t y p r o v i d e t r a i n i n g f o r t h e y o u n g m a n o r
w o m a n w h o w a n t s t o d e v o t e h i s a d u l t l i f e t o s p o r t s .
M y r e a s o n i n g i s t w o f o l d : 1 ) A m e r i c a n s o c i e t y h a s
o r d a i n e d t h a t s p o r t s s h a l l b e a m a j o r a s p e c t o f o u r
n a t i o n a l l i f e , w i t h m a j o r a t t e n t i o n , m a j o r f i n a n c i a l
s u p p o r t a n d m a j o r c o v e r a g e i n t h e m e d i a . H o w
p o s s i b l y c a n a m a j o r a s p e c t o f l i f e b e i g n o r e d b y
o u r s c h o o l s ?
2 )
I f i t i s p e r m i s s i b l e t o t r a i n y o u n g
m u s i c i a n s a n d a c t o r s i n o u r u n i v e r s i t i e s , a n d
e n d o w m u n i f i c e n t d e p a r t m e n t s t o d o s o , w h y i s
i t
n o t e q u a l l y l e g i t i m a t e t o t r a i n y o u n g a t h l e t e s , a n d
e n d o w t h e m w i t h a s t a d i u m ?
F o u r t h , b e c a u s e o u r s c h o o l s h a v e v o l u n t e e r e d
t o s e r v e a s u n p a i d t r a i n i n g g r o u n d s f o r f u t u r e
p r o f e s s i o n a l s , a n d b e c a u s e s o m e o f t h e l u c k y
s c h o o l s w i t h g o o d s p o r t s r e p u t a t i o n s c a n e a r n a
g o o d d e a l o f m o n e y f r o m t h e s e m i - p r o f e s s i o n a l
f o o t b a l l a n d b a s k e t b a l l t e a m s t h e y o p e r a t e , t h e
t e m p t a t i o n t o r e c r u i t y o u n g m e n s k i l l e d a t g a m e s
b u t t o t a l l y u n f i t t e d f o r a c a d e m i c w o r k i s o v e r -
p o w e r i n g . W e m u s t s e r i o u s l y a s k i f s u c h b e h a v i o r
i s l e g i t i m a t e f o r a n a c a d e m i c i n s t i t u t i o n . T h e r e a r e
h o n o r a b l e a n s w e r s , a n d I k n o w s o m e o f t h e m , b u t
i f w e d o n o t f a c e t h i s m a t t e r f o r t h r i g h t l y , w e a r e
g o i n g t o r u n i n t o t r o u b l e .
BASEBALL
B
aseball is a nine-a-side game played with
bat, ball, and glove, mainly in the U.S.A.
Teams consist of a pitcher and catcher,
called the battery, first, second, and third
basemen, and shortstop, called the infield, and
right, centre, and left fielders, called the outfield.
Substitute players may enter the game at any
time, but once a player is removed he cannot
return.
The standard ball has a cork-and-rubber centre
wound with woollen yam and covered with horse-
hide. It weighs from 5 to 5 1/4 oz. (148 g.) and is
from 9 to 9 1/2 in. (approx. 23 cm.) in circumfer-
ence. . . . The bat is a smooth, round, tapered
piece of hard wood not more than 2 3/4 in. (ap-
prox. 7 cm.) in diameter at its thickest part and no
more than 42 in. (1.07 m.) long.
Originally, fielders played barehanded, but
gloves have been developed over the years. First
basemen wear a special large mitt, and catchers
use a large, heavily-padded mitt as well as a chest
protector, shin guards, and a metal mask. Catchers
were at first unprotected. Consequently, they
stood back at a distance from home plate and
caught pitched balls on the bounce, but the intro-
duction of the large, round, well-padded mitt or
"pillow glove" and the face mask enabled them to
move up close behind the plate and catch pitched
balls on the fly. Players wear shoes with steel
cleats and, while batting and running the bases,
they use protective plastic helmets.
The game is played on a field containing four
bases placed at the angles of a 90-ft. (27.4 m.)
square (often called a diamond): home plate and,
in counter-clockwise order, first, second, and third
base. Two foul lines form the boundaries of fair
territory. Starting at home, these lines extend past
first and third base the entire length of the field,
which is often enclosed by a fence at its farthest
limits.
The object of each team is to score more runs
than the other. A run is scored whenever a player
circles all the bases and reaches home without
being put out. The game is divided into innings, in
SPORTS 253
3. continued
each of which the teams alternate at bat and in the
field. A team is allowed three outs in each half-
inning at bat, and must then take up defensive
positions in the field while the other team has its
rum to try to score. Ordinarily, a game consists of
nine innings; in the event of a tie, extra innings are
played until one team outscores the other in the
same number of innings.
The players take turns batting from home plate
in regular rotation. The opposing pitcher throws
the ball to his catcher from a slab (called the
"rubber") on the pitcher's mound, a slightly raised
area of the field directly between home and se-
cond base. .. . Bases are canvas bags fastened to
metal pegs set in the ground.
The batter tries to reach base safely after hitting
the pitched ball into fair territory. A hit that enables
him to reach first base is called a "single," a two-
base hit is a "double," a three-base hit a "triple,"
and a four-base hit a "home-run." A fair ball hit
over an outfield fence is automatically a home run.
A batter is also awarded his base if the pitcher
delivers four pitches which, in the umpire's judge-
ment, do not pass through the "strike zone" — that
is, over home plate between the batter's armpits
and knees; or if he is hit by a pitched ball; or if the
opposing catcher interferes when he swings the
bat. To prevent the batter from hitting safely,
baseball pitchers deliver the ball with great speed
and accuracy and vary its speed and trajectory.
Success in batting, therefore, requires courage
and a high degree of skill.
After a player reaches base safely, his prog-
ress towards home depends largely on his team
mates' hitting the ball in such a way that he can
advance. . . .
Players may be put out in various ways. A
batter is out when the pitcher gets three 'strikes'
on him. A strike is a pitch that crosses the plate in
the strike zone, or any pitch that is struck at and
missed or is hit into foul territory. After two strikes,
however, foul balls do not count except when a
batter 'bunts' — lets the ball meet the bat instead
of swinging at it — and the ball rolls foul. A batter
is also out if he hits the ball in the air anywhere
in fair or foul territory and it is caught by an
opponent before it touches the ground. He is out if
he hits the ball on the ground and a fielder catches
and throws it to a player at first base, or catches it
and touches that base, before the batter (now
become a base runner) gets there.
A base runner may be put out if, while off base,
he is tagged by an opposing player with the hand
or glove holding the ball, or if he is forced to leave
his base to make room for another runner and
fails to reach the next base before an opposing
player tags him or the base; or if he is hit by a
team mate's batted ball before it has touched or
passed a fielder.
An umpire-in-chief "calls" balls and strikes from
his position directly behind the catcher at home
plate, and one or more base umpires determine
whether runners are safe or out at the other three
bases.