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presentative teams is a natural consequence of rivalry and the desire
for distinction in such comparison, forcibly creates the need of devotion
to a specialised training, controlled diet, frugal life, and what is more
important, for many hours and frequently for the full day, preoccupation
for long periods, and indeed during those years when the individual
should have as his main care the establishement and guarantee
of his future. The exaggerated devotion and preoccupation with athletics
isolates the individual from all manifestations of social life with the
result, that the athlete loses all his independence, to be out of touch
with his contracts,and even to become estranged from the wider horizons
of life, and that nothing more should be left to him but this sole specialization
which he has acquired and towards which he has turned all his
attention, especially when this specialization has assured him premature
fame and flattering glory. When, however, with the passing of time
the carefree enthusiasm has evaporated, which generally coincides with
the passing of bodily abilities and athletic achievements, and he starts
to face the raw problems of life, then, unfortunately, it is too late, and
he realises that he had been led astray by bad counsellors. Even among
the purely professional athletes, they are very few who are able to assure
their future lives, and these only because they left the arenas in time,
when they were at the height of their glory and achievements and had
foreseen with understanding what was necessary. Most, however, have
been entirely ruined. One might remember the lines of Euripides:
"When bitter old age arrives, it resembles
the tatters of old overcoats" (Athen. I, 4)
Some countries have fortunately realised quite early that even the
semi-official recognition of the professional tendencies leads to a tragic
impasse, because they realised that it would be impossible to meet the
continually increasing multifarious demands. These demands continually
increased in quantities directly in relation to the increase of the number
of athletes and their achievements.
They also realised that the original objective was not sufficiently
satisfied, for the athletes thus benefitted, would make demands analogous
to the partial satisfaction of their material pursuits, whereas a
genuine amateur athlete who is warmed by and acts upon his love
for athletics and competitive rivarly would achieve much more because
he is determined even to undergo personal sacrifices in order to improve
his results. Finally they realised that there was being created a dificult,
or rather unbearable situation in the relationship between the
athletes recipient of benefactions and the factors, such as between an
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