Childhood memories of Joe Louis, Willie Mays, Lenny Moore, Johnny Unitas and several other sports icons are recalled in the idolizing mind of Freddie, a lifelong sports fan, who grew up in Western, North Carolina during the 1950s and 60s. The early careers of Cassius Clay/Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson and O.J. Simpson, are written as personal narratives. The timeline spans five decades. Fanatical eyewitness accounts of sitting in the stands watching teenagers David Thompson, James Worthy, Eric Sleepy Floyd, and Michael Jordan are recalled and shared from the perspective of a tenacious sports fan. The early careers of Larry Bird and Earvin Magic Johnson are also recalled. Several associate Gastonia, NC Highland Junior-Senior High scholar athletes are highlighted. Florida State basketball coach Leonard Hamilton is one of the athletes. Leonard was a teammate of Sam Lowery a great Highland basketball players. Sam helped lay the foundation for James Worthy, Sleepy Floyd, Bubba Wilson, Daryl Armstrong and other NBA players. Sam died much too young. The closing chapter highlights wisdom and knowledge that should have been shared with the Sam Lowerys of the world.

Sports Crazy: How Sports Are Sabotaging American Schools exposes the excesses of middle and high school sports and the detrimental effects our sports obsession has on American education. Institutions are increasingly emulating college and professional sports models and losing sight of a host of educational and health goals. Steven J. Overman describes how this agenda is driven largely by partisan fans and parents of athletes who exert an inordinate influence on school priorities, and he explains how and why school administrators shockingly and consistently capitulate to these demands. The author underscores the incongruity of public schools involved in an entertainment business and the effects this diversion has on academic integrity, learning, life experience, and overall educational outcomes. Overman examines out-of-control school sports within the context of a school’s educational mission and curriculum, with telling reference to impacts on physical education. He explores as well the outsized place of interscholastic sports beyond the classroom and scrutinizes the distorted relationship between intramural or recreational sports and elitist, varsity athletics. Overman’s chapter on tackle football explains many reasons why this sport should be eliminated from the school extracurriculum and replaced by flag or touch football. Overman presents a brief history of interscholastic sports, and he compares and contrasts the American experience of school-sponsored sport to the European model of community-based clubs. Which approach better serves students? Overman recommends reforms in the context of a radical proposal to phase out interscholastic sports in favor of an intramural or club model. This approach would alleviate such problems as elitism and gender bias and reign in hypercompetitiveness while freeing schools to educate students rather than provide public entertainment.

Contemporary sports have transformed from entertainment activities that bring people together to a lucrative business that sparks sport fans to engage and share content on social media. A successful sport event promotes the visibility of sponsors' brands, cultivates a dedicated following for participating teams, generates income for its organizers, and enhances the financial gains and popularity of star players. Branding such as this has emerged as an indispensable element in strategies that ensure the sport event is easily recognizable, and inscriptive in the minds of sports consumers. Internationalization of Sport Events Through Branding Opportunities explains this shift, as well as share best practices for effective implementation of these strategies. By bringing together international teams and renowned players, organizers can ensure a high level of competition and excitement for sports enthusiasts. Coving topics such as celebrity sports players, product endorsement, and social media, this book is an excellent resource for researchers, scholars, graduate and postgraduate students, sports industry professionals, business and marketing professionals, policy makers, government officials, media and communication experts, and more.

In a world that is rapidly evolving, the need for effective communication across generations has never been more crucial. Whether you are a young adult just entering the workforce, a middle-aged professional navigating familial and career challenges, or a senior seeking to share wisdom while adapting to new societal norms, this book aims to bridge the generational divide and enhance understanding across age groups. But why is intergenerational communication so important today, and what challenges and benefits does it present?

"For close to a half century after World War II, Marty Glickman was the preeminent voice of New York sports. He also has been remembered as a Jewish athlete who was cynically barred from running in the 1936 Olympics by antisemitic American Olympic officials who did not want their Nazi friends to witness a Jew standing triumphantly on the victory stand"--

Examples of ineffective and even negative leaders are all too abundant in sports. Poor leadership attitudes are a great loss for players, coaches, teams, schools, communities and society as a whole. To become productive leaders, coaches, administrators and parents need guidance and resources. This book reveals what the most revered scholars and icons from business and other leadership fields know about leadership theory, research and practice--and applies the results to the world of sport. This is a book parents, coaches and administrators can use to maximize their own leadership potential as well as teach leadership to those under their charge.

This work brings a fresh perspective to the history of modern prizefighting, a sport which has evolved over several centuries to become one of mankind's most lasting and valued sporting attractions. With his primary focus outside the ropes, the author shows how organizers, publicity agents, and political allies overcame both legal and moral roadblocks to make fisticuffing a lively commercial enterprise. The book begins with the clandestine bare-knuckle fights in eighteenth-century London, and ends with the vibrant, large-scale productions of modern Las Vegas "fight nights." Along the way, he explains many of the myths about antiquarian prizefighters, describes the origins of slave fight folklore, and examines the forces that transformed Las Vegas into the world's leading venue for important fights.