Proving you're better than the other guy

Of course, some form of sports is fine. It's good exercise and can be good fun. But things in the world are so different, and when athletes get to the professional level where they're being paid to win, it gets extremely competitive. It becomes almost a life-and-death spirit. For example, the soccer players in the World Cup practically ran themselves to exhaustion, suffered injuries and bruises, and still kept playing, because they wanted to win no matter what it cost them physically.

It's a spiritual thing. It's the spirit of competition and pride, proving you're better than the other guy. They do it by sheer brawn, by their own strength, which really feeds their pride. It's their idea of success. Winning means success in the world, so to win is a very big motivator. It just seems to be sort of an instinct with men especially to want to compete and to win. When they watch the World Cup or other sports events, it's almost like an extension of those human desires to compete and win. That's why some people get so into it, because they can relate to that drive to compete. The physical exertion, and then finally the goal, is exhilarating for some people. But the world just loves it! See how this competitive sports thing has been the final stages of every great civilization and empire.

Ted Rudow III, MA