How is sport in contemporary society related to sport in earlier civilizations? Why is the expenditure of energy involved in sport considered exhilarating, while the equivalent expenditure of energy in other contexts can be dispiriting? David Sansone offers answers to these questions and advances a revolutionary thesis to account for the widespread phenomenon of sport. Drawing upon ethnological findings to demonstrate the ritual character of sport, he explores the relationship between ancient Greek sport and sacrificial ritual and traces elements common to both back to primitive origins.

David Sansone is Professor of Classics at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

"From the sometimes painful rituals of preparation to the crown of leaves and the victory cup, Sansone traces the vivid details of sports culture back into prehistory. . . . His style mixes speculation, history, common sense, and personal experiences . . . into a continuously provocative argument."—Thomas D'Evelyn, Christian Science Monitor

"One of the most provocative interpretations of the origins and nature of early and all sport to appear in decades."—Allen Guttmann, Journal of Sport History