Sports in International Politics

Between Power and Peacebuilding

Timothy D. Sisk

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English

Rowman & Littlefield
15 March 2024

Peace studies & conflict resolution; International relations; Human rights; Civil rights & citizenship; Olympic games

Sport has historically been part of a broader quest of regimes for power and prestige on the world stage, and that success in global sport was a function of a country’s projection of hegemony and place in an anarchic international system. While such historical trends of politicization of sport continue—witness the nationalism on display at each Olympic games—today sport is equally seen as a strategically key approach for advancing human rights, building peace, strengthening social cohesion, and fostering development. In practical terms, international sport resides between a “realist” world of power and profit while at the same time has become an instrument of liberal internationalism that sees the advancement of individual values of rights, gender equality, and empowerment of often marginalized groups such as indigenous peoples, traumatized war victims, and those with disabilities.

How does international politics affect the world of global sport, and, how -- if at all – can sport contribute to the pursuit of sustainable peace? Sport and International Politics: Power, Profit, and Peace explores the complex linkages between power politics of the international arena, the profit-seeking, often elitist and at-times corrupt world of professional international sport, and the promise for harnessing sport to promote human rights, inclusive development, and sustainable peace in a violent world.

Timothy D. Sisk presents the case that sport’s direct relationship to peace is found not in the fanfare of the Olympic Games (without reform), but in sport- and play-related contributions to humanitarian action, expanding the right to access sport and the rights of athletes of all ages and abilities, and in the well-designed employment of sport in youth-based development and peacebuilding programs and projects. Sport’s contribution to peace is found not principally in the nation-state ensnared Olympic Games, but instead step-by-step, from the bottom up through sport’s contribution to positive youth development, empathy and fairness, and through engendering trust and social cohesion at community and national levels.

By: Timothy D. Sisk
Imprint: Rowman & Littlefield
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 228mm, Width: 151mm, Spine: 14mm
Weight: 345g
ISBN: 9781538187111
ISBN 10: 1538187116
Pages: 256
Publication Date: 15 March 2024
Recommended Age: From 18 to 22 years
Audience: College/higher education , Primary
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Timothy D. Sisk is professor of international and comparative politics in the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver and has been teaching sport and politics courses for over twenty years. The author’s early-childhhod personal exposure to sport and its peacebuilding potential, together with a lifetime of personal experience, informs his writing. Today, Sisk’s current sport activities in cycling (road, gravel, MTB, bikepacking), skiing (Alpine, Nordic, telemark, Skimo), mountaineering, swimming, foosball (aka, “table soccer”), and kayaking, reflect his social identity outside of academia. He is a seven-time, most-recent-years finisher of the vertically challenging Colorado recreational cycling ride, “The Triple Bypass” (Team Evergreen). Sisk is author of Statebuilding: Consolidating Peace after Civil War (Polity), International Mediation in Civil War: Bargaining with Bullets (Routledge), and Power Sharing and International Mediation in Ethnic Conflicts (U.S. Institute of Peace), among other books; and editor or co-editor of eight books including Civil Action and the Dynamics of Violence (Oxford University Press), Democratization in the 21st Century: Reviving Transitology (Routledge), and Between Terror and Tolerance: Religious Leaders, Conflict and Peacebuilding (Georgetown University Press).

Reviews for Sports in International Politics: Between Power and Peacebuilding

Tim Sisk critically explores the complex relationships between sports, politics, and peace. He shows how the same drivers that boost social unity have been used to promote ideologies of hate. He finds, however, that with care, sport can be a powerful catalyst for peace. --Cedric De Coning, Research Professor, Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI) This is an extremely impressive analysis of the impact of sport on global politics. Timothy Sisk goes straight to the heart of the matter: power. The book lays bare the complexities and politicization of sport and punctures a number of myths about the healing power of sport. The book is highly recommended. --Roger Mac Ginty, Durham University Easily accessible and with deep insight, Sports in International Politics provides an exploration into key trends in the relationship between, on the one hand, sports and global politics, and, on the other hand, the 'every day' dimensions of sports in the nurturing of peace and tolerance. By offering the reader a conceptual tool box and mapping empirical trends it is essential reading for understanding the double-edged nature of sports in promoting peace and driving conflict, locally and internationally. --Kristine Höglund, Professor of Peace and Conflict Research, Uppsala University In this insightful and comprehensive book, Professor Timothy Sisk explores the intricate connection between sport, power, and global governance, as well as peacebuilding within our ever-changing and turbulent global landscape. An essential resource for those seeking to understand the transformative potential of sport in promoting international peace and sustainable development. --Professor Fred Tanner, Ambassador (Ret.)