On Weiss on Records, Athletic Activity, and the Athlete

Abstract

Professor Weiss and I agree in denying that the end or goal of athletic activity can be adequately characterized in terms of setting records. However, we seem to disagree about the fundamental nature and goal of athletic activity. Professor Weiss’s athlete strikes me as a kind of fanatic, whose athletic activity excludes other goals and projects. By contrast, I would argue that the goal of athletic activity is the intrinsic enjoyment that one may derive from it, and this goal is perfectly compatible with having many other goals and projects in life.