Critical Scientific Review of Team Sports
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Dr. Hermann Brandt CRITICAL SCIENTIFIC REVIEW OF TEAM SPORTS Thulin Award by FIEP, Year 1970 TCHOUKBALL TCHOUKBALL: The Sport of Tomorrow! Foreword and Drawing by Michel Favre ROULET Publications, Geneva FOREWORD In this beginning of the XXIst Century, the relationship, collaboration, and construction sports phenomenon remains a key activity. in common. The term “sport” is a borrowing (1828) from The rather disturbed climate of our current the English word “sport” (XVth Century), society has perhaps a favorable effect upon which was itself borrowed from the Old the desire and the need to look for French ((XIIth Century) “desport,” which satisfaction in the area of relationships. In meant “amusement” or “entertainment.” The this sense, the playing of Tchoukball word “sport” applied to bodily activities supports well the relational dimension and performed out of pleasure, often in a spirit promotes interpersonal exchanges and of competition. Later on, it came to mutual respect. This sport encourages the designate any physical activity practiced in idea of an encounter with the idea of going the spirit of play, struggle, and effort, the to a refreshing source rather than looking for practice of which presupposes training and a confrontation in order to fell the adversary. the observance of certain rules. The tournaments and the matches must be In the XXth Century, sport became an festivals that not only leave the space essential domain of information and of necessary for each sports prowess but also entertainment, on account of which it took encourage the encounter in the broad sense, on considerable economic importance. with its entire enriching relational universe. Its important image in society enables The sports exploit of a player should be everyone to let his/her imagination run free lived by the others as the sign of a personal regarding the possibility of acquiring an achievement, of which everyone can feel ideal physical condition, or to dream of the himself an actor. sports exploit that brings fame. Competition This first English translation of Dr. is no longer only related to sports, but it Hermann Brandt’s work, Critical Scientific becomes financial as well. The effects of Review of Team Sports: Tchoukball, the this phenomenon open the doors to all sorts Sport of Tomorrow!, is an important event. of envies and engender the worst excesses. It is being published thirty-three years after In such a context, the fundamental question the first edition in French and thus reflects of safeguarding the identity of sport and of indeed the expansion of Tchoukball. The its educative value is raised in an even more publication of the English text is taking relevant fashion. place at a propitious moment, and will Tchoukball was conceived with the intention consolidate, we hope, the worldwide of defending, protecting, and developing the diffusion of this sport. first and fundamental values of sport. While writing this preface, many memories, Thanks to its comprehensive concept, it is a connected with the first French edition of tool with a definite effectiveness from the 1971, come back to me. I had the great luck physiological, psychological, pedagogical, to meet and to collaborate with Hermann and sociological points of view. Brandt for several years, and to be at his side In 1970 Tchoukball was above all a theory, at the time of the awarding of the Thulin and there were but a few of us to seek the Prize in Lisbon. At his request, I means necessary for the practical realization participated in the execution of the drawings of this sport in society. Its philosophy inside his work, as well as in the cover emphasizes above all two points: on one design and the photo of the Thulin Prize hand, the individual aspect in its totality medal at the back of the book. (psychic and somatic) approached through At the time of the Munich Olympic Games bodily and sports activity, and on the other in 1972, I myself presented the game and the hand, the team aspect in the sense of philosophy of Tchoukball in the framework - 2 - of the workshops attached to the Olympic team remain valid for themselves, and the Games: 8th World YMCA Consultation on country of origin is concerned only through Health and Physical Education, Munich, the means that it offers to the players.” August 28−September 1, 1972. By common agreement, Hermann Brandt In 1970, Hermann and I wrote a charter* in did not print it, for we thought at the time order to bring an indispensable that nationalism was in regression. The complementary text to the rules of the game. quotation of this paragraph in this preface In the first draft of this charter, we had appears relevant to me because its subject is written this sentence (which at the time only likely to offer us topics for thought committed me): regarding the evolution of sports and their “We banish the modern Olympic spirit connection with nationalism in our society. because of its hypocrisies and because of its The expression of my dearest wish is that extreme nationalisms.” you, leaders and players, always encourage In the year 2000, at the time of the creation the development of this sport in the spirit of the Internet site of the International sought by Hermann Brandy and myself, the Federation and of the careful rereading of spirit presented and developed in this work the text of the charter, I agreed to the and in our charter. elimination of this sentence. It seemed to By way of conclusion, I quote the geneticist me to be wiser to moderate this wording in Albert Jacquard: order to avoid any polemical attitude within “The true practice of a sport consists of a the federation and to protect ourselves dialogue of each person with his own body, against a position that was too judgmental under the critical and possibly laudatory with regard to the Olympic movement. eyes of others. This dialogue may be harsh, It appears interesting to me to point out that the demands may be severe; what is in the rough draft of the first writing, we had important is that the body be respected and written this paragraph: not relegated to the rank of a mere tool.” “The game must be framed by a desire for “To live and to smile together, that could be human understanding that is not limited by our motto.” any consideration of religion, any national pride (or two groups!).... We go so far as to Michel Favre expect that no team raises the national *See the Charter in the appendix colors. The personalities who constitute a - 3 - I. GENERAL INTRODUCTION From Science to Technology It seems contradictory to me to rationalize When, as a young doctor, one takes up the Sports on a medical basis before beginning topic of Sports Medicine, one first discovers with the basics: to have knowledge of the that there is, behind that initial appearance, technical structure of Physical Activities, to some extraordinary realities called “Physical understand their management and hence to Education” (“PE”) and “Sports,” which support those who work in a human cover a set of extremely varied processes, meaning with the contribution of scientific methods and activities about which one knowledge. “Science without conscience is merely has a highly fragmentary, precarious but the ruin of the soul”--this remains the and rudimentary conception. The first basis for a human conception of science, and impression is that a legitimate utilitarian in my opinion, that very search for humanity Sports medicine can only be constructed through such Physical Activities seems upon a knowledge of these realities that is at worthy of attention by the scientist. least adequate. That is the reason why on the one hand, we However, while perusing this seemingly can have nothing but praise for ourselves for incoherent set, one becomes aware of the Scientific Activities that have a deployment large scope encompassed by such realities, of more and more Physical Education along with their numerous related problems. Masters, or praise at least those who have Personally, it always seemed indispensable understood that they would not be up to such to base a Sports Medicine activity on a task this far-reaching without the knowledge that is as precise and as complete promptest introduction of biological as possible about the technical nature of scientific realism; and when I say biological, these Physical Activities. Yet, when I also mean everything cerebral, hence wanting to study this first problem, one everything psychological as well. becomes struck by unexpected findings: in Is it to be pretentious or to lack realism to physical activities, one is either caught with wish to see Physical Activities be activities that are performed by sheer humanized? Medicine teaches us what man pleasure, without any other reason or is about because it is rare that any medical motivation other than the pleasure of the act be linked to the personality of the one game and the enjoyment of competition or who is consulting. The slightest medical performance, or one is caught with finding contact, the slightest health problem oneself facing pedagogical concerns, of demands the revising of human data about which the first concern is to reach man in his that problem, and man thus appears in a bodily and physical qualities. This first truly human fashion, which initially classification, seemingly a bit simplistic at encompasses man’s complete medical and first, stays with us from there on in all biological personality, along with everything Sports Medicine activity as there are, one as well in terms of the areas of psychology, the one hand, those who practice sports for personal behavior, the environment both pleasure without considering the biological social and professional, introducing a set of results and, on the other hand, those who data that make man a man, does not look for a qualitative result and who thus fragment itself, does not lend itself to be concern themselves about pedagogy, be they divided into different aspects.