UNIT 17 SPORTS FEATURES: SELECTION OF TOPIC AND PRESENTATION OF MATERIAL Structure Aims Introduction What is a Sports Feature? Types of Sports Features 17.3.1 Sports-Based 17.3.2 Sportsman-Based 17.3.3 Sporting Events 17.3.4 Other Sports Features Selection of Topic 17.4.1 Interest and Expertise 17.4.2 Policy of Publication 17.4.3 Relevance of Topic Collection of Material 17.5.1 Research into Topic 17.5.2 Collection of Data 17.5.3 Photographs 17.5.4 Interviews 17.5.5 Other Sources Editing and Organisation of Material Writing the Feature 17.7.1 Beginning 17.7.2 Middle 17.7.3 End 17.7.4 Language and Style Summing up Aids to Activities 17.0 AIMS In this course I will introduce you to writing sports features. The various types of sports features, the selection of topics and rresentation of material will be the subject of this unit. At the end of this unit you will be able to List the various kinds of sports features appearing in the print media Select appropriate topics to write on then Collect relevant materials, and Write out a feature that is well-researched and stylistically appropriate. 17.1 INTRODUCTION Sports features appear in newspapers, general magazines (e.g: India Today, Sunday), sports magazines (e.g. Sportsworld, Sportstar) and the electronic media. A particular medium has its own specifications and problems. For example, a sports feature in a newspaper is generally topical and provides up-to-date information. A newspaper sports feature will not, however, have the same immediacy as a live programme on television. Magazines devoted exclusively to sports have to decide on the type of sports features to be included in a particular issue. Sports features are a highly, specialized form of writing. We will introduce you hen5 to some of the qualities of a sports feature and the manner in which it is put together. Writing on Special Themes11 17.2 WHAT IS A SPORTS FEATURE ? A sports feature is an article or television/video presentation that deals with a particular sport, a match or tournament, a sports personality, outstandihg achievements and records, and sporting trivia. A sports feature concentrates on one or more of the aspects mentioned. For example, a sports feature could deal with a test match between India and Pakistan, World Cup Football, Wimbledon, Sunil Gavaskar or Steffi Graff and trivia about a game or a personality. A sports feature presents information, news and analyses of sporting events and the personalities who make these events happen. Activity 1 What do you understand by the term "sports feature"? (50 words) 17.3 TYPES OF SPORTS FEATURES In a newspaper or a magazine these are various types of sports features published in a particular issue. Sports feature can be sports-based, sportsman-based or based on sporting events. These are the focii of most sports features Occasionally sports features deal with sporting history, trivia, records and the problems involved in learning a particular game. Let us look at the various types of sports features in greater detail. 17.3.1 Sports-Based A sports feature could deal with a particular sport such as cricket, football, chess or tennis. A sports-based feature deals with various aspects of the particular sport. A newspaper normally covers latest reports on matches and tournaments in progress. During the Gary Kasparov-Anatony Karpov clash for determining the world Chess Champion, newspapers carried daily reports on the matches. For example on 1 December 1990, the Times of India carried a feature on the 15th game between the two contenders. This feature deals with a match and the moves made during the game. Similarly cricket, tennis or hockey matches are covered in sports based features. Sports-based features concentrate not only on tournaments, but on problems and controversies in a sport as well. The May 15, 1990 issue of India Today has a sports feature on the problem of coaching and selection of players in Indian hockey. The feature deals with the problem of administrative incompetence, political interference and the pathetic state of Indian hockey. It is an analytical sports-based feature. The same issue has a feature on the vagaries of selection to the Indian cricket team. This feature analyses a vital aspect of cricket: who are'the people who select our national players and how competent are they?, A sports-based feature presents direct reports regarding a game, an analysis of a particular match or an insight into problems besetting the game in a particular country. Activity 2 Imagine yourself as the sports correspondent of your locality city area. How would you write out a sports feature of a cricket or football match? (50 words) 17.3.2 Sportsman-Based Sports Features : Selection of Topic and Presentation Sports features can focus exclusively on a sportsperson. Such features deal with sport people of Material who are outstanding in their respective games. Features on Steff~Graff, V. Anand, Limba Ram, Maradonna, Gary Lineker. Mike Atherton or Ivan Lend1 focus on the sporting genius of these people. A sportsman-based feature is generally in the form of a profile. Activity 3 Write a profile on any one of the following sports persons a) Milkha Singh b) T.C. Yohanan C)Vishwanathan Anand d) Limba Ram e) P. T. Usha f) Syed Modi. (10 sentences--outline only) (Check your answer with the hints provided at the end of this unit.) 8- 17.3.3 Sporting Events Yet another type of sports feature that concentrates on a major sporting event is the sporting events feature. The Olympics, World Cup Football, the Asian Games, the Cricket World Cup, Wimbledon, Australian Open (or any Grand Slam) are some of rhe major sporting events covered in this category of sports feature. The Olympics, for example, are composed of numerous events. A feature on the Olympics would cover all the disciplines involved and provide details of competitions, personalities, and records in these disciplines. Each sporting event has its own ethos and traditions and features on such events highlight the uniqueness of the event. 17.3.4 Other Sports Features Coaching classes The major reason why players at the net don\ reach lobs is that they 1- -/( dont react fast enough \ to the baU. If your opponent hits @ways easier to move lots of lobs, be forward for the volley, than to move backward for the overhead. your weight on the front of your feet, not I A-'C=5=r=1 reShng on your heels. I Writing on Special Themes-11 Apart from the categories mentioned, sports features can deal with sports history (for example, of the Ashes or the Olympics), with records (in the form of tables and statistics), with interesting but incidental details regarding sports persons and events. Sports features can be in the form of "coaching classe<'-for example, "Stan Smith's Tennis Class" features in Spsrtstar. Sports features can be in the form of quizzes and crosswords which highlight interesting facts regarding a sport and its history. QUIZ- QUESTIONS ANSWERS 1. Kennington oval has a permanent place in the history of football. 1. The first F.A. Cup final was Whxr9 played there (on March 16, 1872). rr 11J ' 2. Charlie Dumas. 2. Who was the first man to surpass 3. Queensland seven feet in the high jump? 4. In Europe the racing bicycle is 3. Don Bradman's highest score was known & a Vels.. Hence the 452 not out. Who were the name velodrome o~~onents?.. 5. John Peterson 6. George Leigh Mallory 4. Cycle tracks are called velodromes all over the world. 7. Gordon Pine (Great Britain) Why? 8. The greatest Nordic ski race of the world. 5. An American wrestler won a gold medal in the 1976 Olympics. Name him 6. Which famous mountainer said that he wanted to climb Everest simply 'because it is there? 7. Which long-distance runner-an Olympic favourite in the Fifties- was nicknamed 'Mr. Puff-Puff by foreign journalists? 8. What is the 'Vasa Lopp? Perhaps the most immediate and spectacular type of sports feature is the one beamed live over television. Live transmission of major sports events captures the excitement and immediacy of the event. Sports features in the form of TVNideo programmes also convey the sense of excitement. "Sunil Gavaskar Presents" and "Sports Channels" are just two examples of the audio visual sports feature, where actual footage and analysis are combined. 17.4 SELECTION OF TOPIC Sports features are not published in newspapers or magazines in a haphazard manner. Each feature has a particular logic to it and the selection of topic is the first step towards determining the type of feature that will be published. The selection of topic depends on several factors. 17.4.1 Interest and Expertise A particular newspaper or magazine will publish only those sports features which it can research thoroughly and cover competently. The type of feature published will depend on the expertise available. For example, a publication with a specialized cricket feature writer, will not ask that writer to cover the Olympic games. A track-and-field specialist will not be asked to do a write up on formula one racing. The interests of the readers determine the selection of topic. In India cricket, hockey, athletics or tennis are avidly followed, whereas baseball or figure skating are not. A publication would therefore, concentrate on the former sports. The selection of topic depends on the interests of staff in a particular organisation. Interests Sports Features : Selection of can of course be expanded, but the quality and authenticity of features are very important.