Publication Date

2014

Document Type

Article

Abstract

Since its 1946 independence, Syria has fielded a team for every summer Olympic competition except 1956, yet has won only three Olympic medals. In contrast with its smaller, higher-powered neighbor Lebanon, its participation at the Olympics has been consistent but limited, with the country making little impact internationally. Yet the history of Syria’s involvement with the Olympics reflects key elements of its political and social history: its ambitious but short-lived partnership with Egypt, the Baathist-supported promotion of women as athletes and head of the National Olympic Committee, and its commitment to participation in the vexed but ideologically important Pan-Arab Games. This article uses official International Olympic Committee publications and related press coverage to examine the history of Syria’s involvement with the Olympic Games, the Mediterranean Games, and the Pan-Arab Games. It argues that Syria’s participation was initially important not for its medal count but for the “sign of statehood” that membership in the Olympic community conferred, and that its participation in regional games supported Syria’s political positions as a Baathist, Arab republic. It concludes by contending that these political commitments have renewed salience as the conflict in Syria that began in March 2011 continues, and the country’s participation in Olympic and regional games becomes increasingly politicized.

Copyright Statement / License for Reuse

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Publication Statement

Copyright held by the author or publisher. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Rights Holder

Andrea L. Stanton

Provenance

Received from author

File Format

application/pdf

Extent

30 pgs

File Size

284 KB

Publication Title

The International Journal of the History of Sport

Volume

31

First Page

1

Last Page

30

Comments

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in the International Journal of the History of Sport on Feb. 4, 2014, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/09523367.2013.865018

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