Full Description
Drawing on newspaper accounts, college yearbooks and the recollections of veterans, this book examines the impact of World War I on sports in the U.S. As young men entered the military in large numbers, many colleges initially considered suspending athletics but soon turned to the idea of using sports to build morale and physical readiness. Recruits, mostly in their twenties, ended up playing more baseball and football than they would have in peacetime. Though most college athletes volunteered for military duty, others replaced them so that the reduction of competition was not severe. Pugilism gained participants as several million men learned how to box.
Contents
Table of Contents
Preface
Introduction: Before America Entered the Great War
1. Professional Baseball
2. College Baseball
3. Military Baseball at Home and Abroad
4. College Football
5. Professional and Military Football
6. Track and Field
7. Basketball and Volleyball
8. Golf and Tennis
9. Rowing, Swimming, Yachting and Motorboat Racing
10. Boxing and Wrestling
11. Auto, Motorbike and Bicycle Racing
12. Ice Hockey and Other Winter Sports
13. Equestrian Sports
14. Gymnastics, Lacrosse and Soccer
15. Potpourri: Archery—Trapshooting
16. The Inter-Allied Military Olympics
17. Legacy of the War
Appendix: Records, 1916-1919
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index
