In Pursuit of Excellence A Student Guide to Elite Sports Development [Paperback]

Competitive sport is today about winning and training to win. Many athletes are professionals, with careers managed by teams of specialist staff working towards the ultimate goal of world-class, medal-winning performances.

This entry-level text offers new students a comprehensive introduction to the phenomenon of the pursuit of excellence in sport, covering the key issues and talking points including:

• the history and tradition of sporting excellence
• comparisons of elite high-performance sport programmes in Australia, the USA, East Germany and France
• the historical, social, political and economic impacts of sporting excellence in the UK
• current issues and debates, including drugs in sport
• the future for high-performance sport.

With a clear framework for understanding and exploring key issues, questions for discussion, websites and suggestions for further reading, In Pursuit of Excellenceis an ideal introduction for AS, A Level and undergradute students.

Introduction  1. Sporting Excellence - the Concept  2. Sporting Excellence - an Historical Overview  3. The Long Winding Path- Sport Excellence in the UK 1950-1990  4. Atlanta 1996 - an Olympic Failure Too Far  5. Comparative Study  Four Case Studies  a. Australia: Why Are They Winning?  b. Vive la France  c. USA - No 1  d. The GDR  6. World Class at Long Last  UK Sport Excellence 2000+  7. Win at All costs?  the Art of Gamesmanship  8. Citius, Altius, Fortius, Pharmacus  Drugs in ?lite Sport  9. What the Future Holds  10. Current View  Contacts for Further Research  Index