More Than Just a Game

"Every aspect of the sporting world has exploded in the years since 1945. Player salaries, the cost of fielding a team, the hype surrounding games, the number of cameras on the sidelines, the wealth from corporate sponsorships, the level of drug use, the number of women and African Americans participating, the global reach of games: all of these have contributed to a shift in the way Americans perceive the meaning of sports. More Than Just a Game traces these complex developments over the past sixty years." "This book examines major sports, both professional and intercollegiate, from baseball, football, and basketball to golf, tennis, stock car racing, and extreme sports. It also covers the political and social ramifications of the Olympic games and the growing appetite for recreational sports. How did the National Basketball Association go from a podunk regional league to an international powerhouse? Why did the 1973 tennis "Battle of the Sexes" between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs matter? How does Lance Armstrong's rise to the peak of the cycling - and advertising - worlds exemplify recent developments in sports?" "In answering these questions, Kathryn Jay illustrates how sports have helped to shape racial, class, gender, and national identities in the United States. She also shows how athletes have been packaged as consumer products to be bought and sold. Nevertheless, this book acknowledges the beauty of sports and is replete with transcendent moments that have engaged the American imagination and thrilled generations of fans."--BOOK JACKET.