Breaking News: Yet Another Sports Scandal

By Sarah Kahane ('25)

t was quite the plunge for Jacob Runyan and Chase Cominsky, two professional fishermen. In a matter of mere weeks, Runyan and Cominsky went from nearly stealing top team honors to facing prison time. What was this alleged crime?

Filling the inside of their fish with stones. Tournament director, Jason Fischer, frantically sounded the alarm after gutting their incredible catch, screaming: “We got weights in fish!” The perpetrators could only sit sheepishly behind the cops who were called in to arrest them, as the angry mob closed in.

Sports companies are multi-billion dollar businesses, making them prone to dishonest play. There are many famous instances in which athletes have cheated in order to win. One of the most infamous cases occurred in 1994. Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan were both considered to be great ice skaters. They were evidently rivals on the rink, but it was never suspected that they had anything less than full respect for each other’s achievements. Yet, right before the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, a man struck Kerrigan with a metal pole on her right leg. In the video, Kerrigan can be seen crying and screaming, obviously in tremendous pain. At first, Harding was not suspected at all and performed in the championship. However, she later came out declaring that her now exhusband and bodyguard had conspired together and hired a man to break Kerrigan’s leg. At first, Harding was banned from skating, but soon after she was accepted back and placed eighth in the following Olympics.

These sports scandals are evolving into a global public policy issue. Corporations attempt to lure

Continued on page 2 consumers by aligning their products and services with a certain player. When a scandal erupts around an athletic endorser, the business either skyrockets or drops completely. These scandals are affecting not only the sports industry, but business and the economy as well. So the question of the hour, why do athletes cheat in sports? Psychological research has provided insight that points to the sheer competitive nature of sports.

It may be an understatement to just say that sports can be “competitive.” In fact, sports have become a very important part of culture. In the words of cultural historian Jacques Barzun, “Whoever wants to know the heart and mind of America had better learn baseball.” There is such a long history of athletes who have cheated, it is difficult to try to summarize the presence of cheating in sports. The effects of cheating extend to the player’s team, coaches, opponents, and even other sports. One infamous example was when athlete Boris Onishchecko was banned from sports for life after he was caught placing an electrical wire in his fencing weapon.

As sports becomes a more serious industry and continues to develop, there has been a large shift from a concentration on the actual game to the surrounding aspects of the player’s life. The stakes are high, especially the case at professional levels of sports. Winning is a necessary ingredient in the pursuit of excellence, and as a result, athletes can take that further than others might. It’s reminiscent of the cliche saying, “winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.”

Competitive sports often place individuals in conflicting situations that emphasize winning over sportsmanship and fair play. There are many other factors at play besides just the competitive nature of the sport. Ego and moral functioning may also play a large role in an athlete justifying their act of cheating.

Less than a decade ago, people of all ages saw Lance Armstrong as a role model, a man who overcame cancer and pushed his way to the top, becoming a champion. However, this hero persona quickly faded when he was caught in a doping scandal. Armstrong was stripped of all his medals and titles leaving him nothing but public embarrassment. Many high performance athletes who have similar personality characteristics to Armstrong learn from him the lesson of winning at any cost, making them highly susceptible to cheating.

These scandals and scams, of course, strongly affect the fans. Many fans are so involved in their favorite team that they have pre-game anxiety and emotional experiences during games. They may even blame losses on biased officiating or cheating. Many children who strive to be like their favorite athlete start believing that using drugs in order to win and become famous is acceptable. Unfortunately, these same children fail to recognize that these players become outcasts in the field and are a shame to their sport.

Though there are a few athletes who choose to turn to cheating, these are the athletes that have their name plastered over every media source in the country. There still are many honest players who participate in their sport merely because they love the game and enjoy sharing their passion with others.

So, the main reason athletes cheat: athletes want to win. At any level of sports, the difference between first and second place feels like miles. Some even think of second place as being the first place to lose. As a result of this, some athletes may believe winning really is the only thing. People enjoy playing, watching, and winning, so it should be done with integrity and be worthwhile for everyone involved, but to many athletes, the risk of getting caught and being labeled a cheater is worth the money and glory. So, is cheating really worth it? That is the question we all want the answer to.