Soviet Sports and the relation to politics in the cold war Research Paper

Soviet Sports and the relation to politics in the cold war - Research Paper Example Similarly, this spirit of competition was not merely limited to those states/actors that supported the West/NATO with reference to capitalism over communism. Instead, the Soviet Union actively sought to promote the superiority of its system of government through the use of its various techniques to include: the arms race, the space race, advances in technology, and prowess displayed through expertise in sporting events. This analysis will work to research the level and extent to which the Soviet Union promoted sport as a means of spreading ideology throughout the world.1 Furthermore, the analysis will seek to answer the question of how this â€Å"threat† was understood by the United States and its allies. Similarly, the understanding of sport as a means towards a political end will be examined as a function of how the Soviet Union viewed these activities. However, before such an analysis is thoroughly performed, it is necessary to delve into an explanation of how the Soviet Un ion developed and fielded some of the most talented athletes that the 21st century has had to offer. Similarly, the research will work to show how the Soviet Union used sport as a means to domestically foster ideas relating to Communism, teamwork, collectivism, physical education, resourcefulness, as well as encouraging elements of national pride and patriotism. In this way, the paper will analyze the extent to which Soviet policies and ideologies directly affected the cultivation and development of the raw talent that it subsequently introduced to the world. Similarly, the scope of desired outcomes that the Soviet Union hoped to achieve from the implementation of such a broad and overarching commitment to sports will be analyzed. Development, Ideology and Vision Prior to the end of the Second World War, the Soviet Union was only represented in two international sporting unions. This was mainly due to the fact that the Soviet Union had been dedicating all its resources to marshal ac tivities involving preparing troops for the front lines. However, the arrival of peace after 1945 allowed the Soviet Union to continue to focus on building up their armed forces while fostering a robust sporting and physical fitness culture. These activities were noticed by the remainder of the world and many American observers of the time noted the rapid growth and dynamism that was portrayed by the Soviet sporting teams. One observer noted, â€Å" The Central Committee of the Soviet Union had the following to say with regards to the role that sport should play in the lives of the citizen, â€Å"Physical culture must be considered not only from the standpoint of physical education and health and as an aspect of the cultural, economic and military training of youth (the sport of rifle marksmanship and others), but also as one of the methods of educating the masses (in as much as physical culture develops will power and builds up endurance, teamwork, and resourcefulness and other v aluable qualities), and in addition, as means of rallying the broad masses of workers and peasants around the various Party, soviet, and trade union organizations, through which the masses of workers and peasants are to be drawn into social and political activity†