Dr. Michael Polyakov is Vice President of Policy for the American Council of Trustees and Alumni.
Education: BA from Yale, studied at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, PhD from the University of Michigan.
Previous roles include Deputy Secretary for Post-Secondary and Higher Education in Pennsylvania, Director of Education Programs at the National Endowment for the Humanities, and Vice President for Academic Affairs and Research at the University of Colorado.
Awards: American Philological Association’s Excellence in Teaching Award, Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Distinguished Service to Education Award.
Author of Combat Sports in the Ancient World: Competition, Violence, and Culture.
Opening Remarks
Expresses joy in being back at Hillsdale College.
Recalls past colleagues and friends at Hillsdale College.
Ancient Sports: Context and Significance
State of Modern Collegiate Sports: Current issues include scandal, corruption, low academic standards, and high expenses.
Hillsdale Approach: Focus on how sports relate to character and looking at historical, especially Greco-Roman, roots.
Key Aspects of Ancient Sports
Environment: Spectators were often uncomfortable; athletes entered through a tunnel to enthusiastic crowds.
Pain and Sacrifice: Example of a story about Arikion, ancient Olympic victor in Pancratium, who died in a match but still won.
Five Key Points:
Only the victor was recognized and rewarded.
Competitions were mainly for individual athletes with little interest in team sports.
Competitions were intense and often dangerous, prioritizing personal honor and material reward.
Open to all social classes but predominantly male participants.
Athletes competed naked as a form of equality.
Detailed Insights
Brutality: Many sports involved significant risk and physical trauma (e.g., boxing with leather thongs, no safety measures).
Prizes and Recognition: Example of cash rewards like 500 drachmas from Athens for Olympic victors. Olympian victories brought significant social status and material wealth.
Democratization of Sport: Contrast with modern restrictions on amateur athletes, with ancient Greece allowing all males to compete, including those from lower social classes.
Naked Competition: Served as an equalizer among participants regardless of social status.
The Greek Agon
The Greek term 'agon' means competition; it was central to various aspects of Greek life, not just sports.
Competition and Virtue: Agon was considered essential for achieving excellence and virtue.
Role in Civic Life: Competition in arts, theater, and sports contributed to civic engagement and social coherence.
Athletic and Military Training: Sports acted as indirect military training for hoplite warfare, reflecting the same level of physical and emotional demands.
Ethical Questions
Second Place and Modern Values: Questioning if second place is truly disgraceful or if we can learn to value participation and effort more broadly.
Balance Between Risk and Safety: Considering how the Greeks accepted high danger levels in sports, whereas today’s sports face ethical scrutiny regarding athlete safety (e.g., chronic traumatic encephalopathy in football).
Doping and Fair Play: Importance of maintaining integrity and fairness in modern sports through rigorous checks.
Conclusion
The ancient Greek approach to competition fostered excellence and social unity, offering lessons on balancing ambition with collective well-being.
Modern sports can benefit from incorporating the spirit of fair competition while ensuring the safety and inclusivity of all athletes.