sports

Gaby’s blog just too imba… koped this from him:
The 20 things I love about sports

1. The silence before the storm.
2. The lust for competition.
3. The art of balance.
4. The cool of skaters.
5. The furrowed hero.
6. The face of battle.
7. The passion of the insane.
8. The Swiss at stylish work.
9. The unveiling of greatness.
10. The music of competition.
11. The element of surprise.
12. The moment of promise.
13. The revealing of character.
14. The smell of history.
15. The hero on the hunt.
16. The possibility of redemption.
17. The Tiger giving stick.
18. The chase for glory.
19. The glue of worship.
20. The slice of luck.

This sums it all: art, style, skill, strategy (thought), blind passion, excitement, competition, heroism, determination, anticipation, luck, fun, history, human spirit, human nature.

Let me add a few more to the list:
21. Physical pain/ strain =pleasure in the mind. You feel good after sports- "Pleasure" hormones like dopamine permeates throughout (That's why sportmen face withdrawal symptoms when they quit sport). You ache everywhere. Yet you know that you've played as hard as you could; you are satisfied with your performance; you can rest well. You feel pain. The rational mind says ouch but the bigger masochist says awww, that's wonderful.

22. Health. Self explanatory.

23. The fights: occasional brawls, a flurry of muscular arms and legs, a lost of control, a wave of emotions, the descend to the realm of ruffians... pure entertainment, but don't try this at home.

24. The blunders: A rugby player knocking on (dropping the ball) just before reaching the tryline with no one in sight, baseball player missing a catch, Beckham missing a penalty... players being tricked, being blur as a sotong, performing badly. Unfortunate? maybe. Deserve it? Maybe. Nevertheless, you watch compilations of them on youtube again and again, laughing derisively at blunders you think you'll never commit.

25. Role models larger than life: sportsmen are legend. They're revered as the epitome of life: mastery, passion, determination... all in one. Of course, many aren't because of steroids or extra-sports clandestine activities.

26. The rallying point. Sports is an amazing rallying point for a school or a nation; in supporting one's own team, commonality is established, bonds are forged, cohesiveness is achieved.

27. The protocol for sports. Ideals of coorperation, brotherhood. Olympic values. No politics? Sports for sports sake. Usually, differences are at least temporarily set aside for sports itself.

I doubt this list can be exhausted. There is just so much to sports, more than what many critics can imagine or foresee. It is plain, it is repetitive, it is overhyped, but it is a perennial favorite. People watch sports again and again, some train for countless hours the same thing again and again. You've got to marvel at sports: its hype, its influence, its ability to enrapture man from time immemorial.

(Separate note: wishing you good luck in all your endeavors Zaf. Dubai is definitely a very interesting place to be in. Thanks for being such a nice og mate:))