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Numerous feature films and documentaries were made about the fate of the world-famous cyclist Lance Armstrong. The film 30 for 30 Lance makes yet another attempt to uncover the fate of the famous athlete, bringing fans of world sports and ordinary people to understand this not-simple doping story. The main feature of this directors work is that the authors have succeeded in conveying the basic cause-and-effect relationships of this story through the lens of issues of diversity, ethics, global awareness and justice.
In the world of sports, doping is certainly a global problem that can cause significant reputational damage not only to the athletes themselves but also to the team, the coaching staff and sometimes even the national team. In this film, the filmmaker sought to expose the issue of athletes taking banned drugs as a systemic problem, and within which the responsibility of the individual athlete is only partial. Nevertheless, in revealing the question of ethics, the authors remain adamant that Lances banning of the rules by his team is a display of disrespect for the entire sport and for his opponents (Zinovich, 2022). Although there are some attempts throughout the film to justify what is happening, the idea that doping is primarily an immoral phenomenon remains evident.
The next important issue covered in the documentary is public awareness. At the peak of his career, society could not even allow the possibility of the massive violation that was being committed by Armstrong and his team. Previously, taking banned drugs was perceived as an individual mistake or violation on the part of an individual athlete but Armstrongs story was the starting point to uncover the magnitude of the problem. It turned out that doping is a well-planned process which involves a large number of people and athletes (Zinovich, 2022). The film suggests that by increasing public awareness of the problem and its magnitude, there is a chance that there will be fewer violations of this kind later on.
Within questions of diversity, the filmmaker seeks to show that attitudes toward this problem vary in different circles of society, sometimes polarized. Lance, in this work, is presented more as a victim of circumstance and seeks to elicit sympathy and compassion from the viewer. Along with the filmmakers artificial attempt to justify the hero to some degree, it is clear that all else being equal, many other athletes would find it difficult to behave differently (Zinovich, 2022). Consequently, the filmmakers allow the audience to make their point of view more flexible and try to move from formal and unequivocal condemnation to attempts at analysis of the situation.
Many people in Lances inner circle are sympathetic to what has happened, arguing that an athlete is often held hostage to a system set up by team members and forced to act under common conditions in order to remain in the sport at the desired level. In some cases, it is possible to talk about pressure from coaches on athletes who really often have no choice (Zinovich, 2022). The opening issues of diversity are one of the greatest strengths of the work, as they have a significant impact on the way of thinking and contribute to a reassessment of preconceptions.
Finally, another important strand of the narrative in this paper is the theme of justice. The punishment that the cyclist received as a result of the investigation is proportionate to the scale of the violations. However, it is clear that the most important consequence for the cyclist was the reputational loss. High-performance sport involves a high level of accountability for behavior in and out of competition (Zinovich, 2022). The story of Lance demonstrates the level of consequence that can be faced by an individual who is part of such misconduct. It could be argued that the experience of this athlete has become a precedent against which to judge other athletes using doping.
I have studied the subject of doping in many different sports, so the movie did not radically change my view on the athlete in question. Im used to treating such stories with a sufficient level of equanimity because I understand that Lance is not the only person who committed a violation of such scale. All athletes entering the top level are aware of the risks of working in a system where banned drugs are taken. It is always a matter of choice by the individual coach and the environment in general, which encourages or disapproves of such tactics.
There are many examples of Armstrongs kind of violations in the world of sports. The most striking and memorable case for me was that of track and field athlete Tyson Gay. This man was found guilty of violations several times, and after his disqualification, he returned to sport. His story involves issues of corruption as it is suspected that Tysons team was bribed to cancel another investigation into banned drugs. Although the man has suffered significant reputational losses, after his disqualification, he has continued to receive large fees for his competitive appearances. The articles about him focus on the records he set rather than on rule violations, indicating that sport is indeed a controversial area in which questions of fairness are still open. It reveals the personal responsibility of each athlete, who decides whether or not the latter continues to work with a team that violates the regulations. The whole subject is quite complicated and ambiguous, and entering the world sports athletes cannot fail to understand the risks and complexities of the system.
Thus, the documentary about Lance Armstrong is not the same in terms of novelty of information in how much the main facts of the heros biography and the reasons for his actions were already known to the public. The director tried to rethink this story from a four-dimensional perspective, including ethics, justice, awareness, and diversity. At the end of the viewing, one can expect that this task has been accomplished. Nevertheless, I did not have a cardinally new perception of this mans personality.
Reference
Zinovich, M. (Executive Producer). (2022). 30 for 30 Lance [TV Series]. ESPN.
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