Sportsmanship

Sportsmanship is traditional value in sports and competition. It means playing clean and handling both victory and defeat with grace, style, and dignity.^[1]

Sportsmanship is generally understood to include

• playing fair^[1]
• following the rules of the game^[1]
• respecting the judgment of referees and officials^[1]
• treating opponents with respect^[1]

The ideal of sportsmanship argues that "it doesn't matter whether you win or lose, but how you play the game".^[2]

Sportsmanship can be different depending on the game itself or the culture of the group. For example, in the sport of cricket, a player will sometimes acknowledge that he is out by walking off the field, even though the umpires (game officials) had thought that he was not out. In another example, a tennis player who sees a ball go in but is called out by the linesperson could concede the point or suggest the opponent make a challenge, as was the case with professional tennis player Jack Sock on at least two occasions.^[3]

In the context of the Olympic Games, athletes are expected to do their best.^[4] Otherwise, they would go against the Olympic motto of "Faster, Higher, Stronger".^[5]

• Eugenio Monti in the bobsleigh at the 1964 Winter Olympics at Innsbruck^[6]
• Lawrence Lemieux in sailing at the 1988 Summer Olympics at Seoul^[7]
• Shin Lam in fencing at the 2012 Summer Olympics at London^[8]

In the London Olympics, some athletes attempted to lose their badminton matches,^[9] including

• Tian Qing, Zhao Yunlei, Wang Xiaoli and Yu Yang of China^[10]
• Jung Kyung-eun, Kim Ha-na, Ha Jung-eun and Kim Min-jung of South Korea^[10]
• Greysia Polii and Meilana Jauhari of Indonesiaз^[4]

• Pierre de Coubertin medal
• Sportsperson
• Unsportsmanlike conduct