Question

What if your school (or country) was competing for a championship and couldn’t
afford to outfit athletes in such equipment and it affected your ability to compete? Would
that make a difference?

Answer 1

Answer:

Q1. In many ways, technology has made all of us more productive. However, ethical

issues do arise in how and when technology is used. Take the sports arena. All kinds of

technologically advanced sports equipment (swimsuits, golf clubs, ski suits, etc.) have

been developed that can sometimes give competitors/players an edge over their

opponents. We saw it in swim meets at the Summer Olympics and on the ski slopes and

ice rinks at the Winter Olympics.

Part 1. What do you think? Is this an ethical use of technology?

Part 2. What if your school (or country) was competing for a championship and couldn’t

afford to outfit athletes in such equipment and it affected your ability to compete? Would

that make a difference?

Part 3. What ethical guidelines might you suggest for such situations?

Expert's answer

part 1.

Athletes have helped improve technique and movement efficiency, reduce harm and improve consistency of performance through the use of biomechanical analysis to correct techniques in sports like golf and tennis and cricket.

part 2

Access equity includes the ethical questions relating to use technology in sport. Even some equipment is expensive, and unless all competitors have access to technology, competition is unfair due to inequities in technology access.

part 3

There is no equal level of equity at international sport competitions. Individual athletes in poor developing countries cannot always afford the same technology as athletes in developed countries, in particular in countries with high sport value.

Answer 2

If my team cannot afford the same equipment for us, as used by other competitors, it would be unfair competition. These days sports gear is developed after a lot of research, and uses science and technology to help improve the performance of the athletes. For example, athletes use shoes with specific features for their races. So, it will not be a level playground (meaning equality in competition), till the time each athlete doesn't have gear of approximately the same quality. There will certainly be a difference in performance as well. The right kind of gear provides functional assistance as well as psychological support. This is one reason why teams look for sponsors.