How James Harris changed the NFL’s marquee role. An hour or two before kickoff on the night of August 15, 1969, a rookie quarterback named James Harris noticed a well-dressed man about a foot shorter than him approaching through the tunnel beneath Detroit’s Tiger Stadium. His 5-foot-4 height notwithstanding, the man was a former NFL[…]
As a player and a coach, Walter Camp rewrote rugby’s rules to create a sport fit for America. By Roger R. Tamte American football is the all-but-official sport of the United States. But for all the media coverage it draws, the origin story of football gets missed. How did this game become compelling enough to[…]
Examining the dietary and physiological requirements of a modern athlete and contrasting this with those of ancient Greek and Roman athletes. By Dr. Adrian Paul Harrison (not pictured) and Dr. Else Marie Bartels (above)Harrison: Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of CopenhagenBartels: Honorary Research Fellow, The Parker Institute, Copenhagen University Hospital Abstract With the[…]
Punishment for cheating and bribery in the Olympics of Ancient Greece could include fines, public flogging and statewide bans from competition. By Naomi Shavin Ancient Olympians didn’t have performance-enhancing drugs at their disposal, but according to those who know the era best, if the ancient Greeks could have doped, a number of athletes definitely would[…]
Bull-leaping fresco from the east wing of the palace of Knossos (reconstructed), c. 1400 B.C.E., fresco, 78 cm high (Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, photo: Jebulon, CC0) The most interesting question about the bull leaping paintings from Knossos is what they might mean. By Dr. Senta German / 08.15.2018 Faculty of Classics Andrew W Mellon Foundation Teaching Curator, Ashmolean Museum[…]
Bull’s head rhyton from the palace at Knossos, c. 1550-1500 B.C.E., black steatite, jasper, and mother-of-pearl, 26 cm high (Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, photo: Zde, CC BY-SA 4.0) Images of bulls are among the most important in Minoan art. By Dr. Senta German / 08.16.2018 Faculty of Classics Andrew W Mellon Foundation Teaching Curator, Ashmolean Museum University of Oxford[…]