Sports provide terrific narrative opportunities

I have long been puzzled by the tendency to label sports writing as a different animal, as something so specialized that only true fans would find it interesting. 

It is true that there is a high volume of sports writing that more closely resembles a report filled with clichés and sappy quotes. But when sports reporting goes beyond the stats and the endless quotes about a) giving 110 percent or b) thanking God for strength (as if the deity had money on the game), you often find that sports writing is not really about sports at all. 

Sports is just the excuse or vehicle that allows talented writers to delve into the human condition. 

It is not easy to "keep score" in our lives. After all, if we have a good day on Monday, who's to say that Tuesday will also go well? Most days sort of drift away, with no satisfying wrap up to events. On our best days, we look forward to what we might do TOMORROW to continue our story and advance our goals. We don't think of everyday life as a discrete contest.

But sporting events feature the four elements that all storytelling needs: setting, characters, conflict, and resolution.

The setting brings in not only location but all sorts of fans, traditions, and emotions. The characters are often teams, but teams feature varied personalities and roles, and everyone faces challenges. Conflict is essential, since we keep score. No conflict? No story. And then there is resolution.

Our lives rarely include clear resolutions. Our victories are illusory as are our defeats. Who won? How would anyone know?

But sports result in a final score. Many people find the very idea of a tie to be depressing and unfulfilling, though a number of sports offer that as a result. So we have overtime and sudden death. We crave resolution. Every NCAA tournament basketball game ends with a winner and a loser, but would most people honestly say that the final score captured the spirit, the joy, the agony of the game itself?

But even knowing there will be a final score doesn't quite capture the allure of great sports reporting. Here is a 13-minute video shown on 60 Minutes this past Sunday that I highly recommend as a way to think of sports reporting as much more than games and stats and scores.

This broadcast package focuses on a sports writer, but is itself a great sports story.

And, as usual, we are reminded that great sports stories are about anything BUT sports.