Having explored a lot of East London in the last few years there’s a sadly regular scene of a playground with a dynamic Olympics mural on its walls, and abandoned. This very interesting interview with photographers Jon Pack and Gary Hustwit take a look at a few other cities’ ‘legacy’.
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Roundtable: First Place! Women in Sports Movies
A very interesting discussion from Cléo Journal’s recent issue where these three writers discuss the representation of women in sports movies, including the intensity of cheerleading and how films in the main are “only valuable based on their appearance to the male gaze or on how much of a romantic interest they are.”
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Vomit, bleeding nipples, and hallucinations on a 150-mile running race
Having ran a couple of marathons I am equal parts in awe and piteous of these runners of the Spartathlon, a road race in Greece that typically takes 24 hours to finish. A well-told story here by The Economist that uses the race’s checkpoints to check in on the physiology, history and mentality behind the event.
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The fascist architecture still hosting Italy’s sporting events
New Statesman sports writer, Ed Smith, often pens thoughtful and sometimes provocative pieces finding the interstices between sports and greater cultural life. This week he examines the fascist architecture of the Foro Italico and how it casts a shadow over a modern Italy.
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Inside the Vicious, Vicious Cheerleader Wars
Dallas-based cheerleader uniform company Rebel Athletic is fighting a spangled, appliqued, fashion-forward guerrilla war against an industry giant. Fascinating insight into multi-billion dollar sportswear industry around cheerleading.
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We are what we wear: How sports jerseys became ubiquitous in the U.S.
Over the last four decades, American sports fans have transformed themselves from a populace that dresses almost exclusively in civilian clothing and pays to watch athletes perform in uniform, to one that dresses exactly like those athletes.
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Watch: Click
For the BBC’s technology programme Click, they take a look at the latest innovations in 3D printing, visiting a San Franciscan company that is leading the way in computer-aided design. The programme considers the benefit to health, particularly prosthetics, and how virtual reality headsets can aid in identifying the neurological impairment of American football players.
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The reaction to David Bowie’s death exposed the dangers of overestimating the innovator
“After all, if reputation relies too heavily on influencing what follows, then “mere” excellence risks being relegated to the second rank.” Sports writer, Ed Smith, with the help of some musical examples, considers if innovation or disruption is as important as being intensely brilliant in the present.
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How boxing movies put black heroes in the frame
For Little White Lies, Christina Newland argues that boxing is “a cinematic sporting tradition that has consistently been the domain of America’s minority working-class” and views the portrayal of various minorities through the filter of the latest Rocky offering, Ryan Coogler’s Creed.
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