94 Competition Lesson D 95

Goal 4 Discuss competitive advantages

Read your bullet-point list to a partner and explain how your advice would give an athlete a competitive advantage Ask your partner to comment on your ideas

Writing

D GOAL 4 DISCUSS COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES

Reading ldquoWhere there was a large point differencemdashpresumably because one athlete was far superior to the othermdashcolor had no effect on the outcomerdquo Barton said ldquoWhere there was a small point difference the effect of color was sufficient to tip the balancerdquo

Joanna Setchell a primate researcher at the University of Cambridge in England has found similar results in nature Her work with the large African monkeys known as mandrills shows that red coloration gives males an advantage when it comes to mating The finding that red also has an advantage in human sporting events does not surprise her and she adds that ldquothe idea of the study is very cleverrdquo

Hill and Barton got the idea for their study from a mutual interest in primatesmdashldquored seems to be the color across species that signals male dominancerdquo Barton said For example studies by Setchell the Cambridge primate researcher show that dominant male mandrills have increased red coloration in their faces and rumps In another study scientists put red plastic rings on the legs of male zebra finches which increased the birdsrsquo success in finding a mate

Barton said he and Hill speculated that ldquothere might be a similar effect in humansrdquo Hill and Barton found their answer by viewing Olympic competitors in the ring on the mat and in the field ldquoAcross a range of sports we find that wearing red is consistently associated with a higher probability of winningrdquo the researchers write

Barton adds that this discovery of redrsquos advantage might lead to new regulations on sports uniforms In the Olympic matches he studied for example it is possible that some medal winners may have had an unintended advantagemdashtheir clothing

A Read this summary of the article Use a dictionary to find out the meanings of the words in blue

You will read about two anthropologists from England who wanted to know whether the color of athletesrsquo clothing affected the outcomes of sporting events They did their research during the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens and they found that wearing the color red was an advantage when the opponents had similar abilitiesmdashthe athletes in red won more often However when one athlete was clearly superior to the other athlete the red clothing wasnrsquot important

The scientists explained these results by looking at the way animals respond to the color red Some primates and birds have red on parts of their bodies which helps them to attract a mate Another scientist says that dominant male animals sometimes have more red on their bodies The article ends by suggesting that sports regulations may need to be changed so that athletes with red uniforms wonrsquot have an unfair advantage

B As you read the article take notes on the scientific research

the names and university of the scientists who did the research in Athens

what those scientists wanted to find out

the method they used (How did they do their research)

the results of their research

C Read the statements Circle T for true F for false or NI for no information (if the information is not in the reading)

1 Hill and Barton are both interested in primates T F NI

2 Female mandrills use red coloration to attract a mate T F NI

3 Red was not an advantage for zebra finches T F NI

4 The red plastic rings were left on the finches permanently T F NI

5 Hill and Barton believe athletes in red are more likely to win T F NI

6 Hill and Barton think some Olympic athletes cheated T F NI

Engage

Can studying animals give scientists information about human beings

A competitive advantage is something that makes you more likely to win or succeed Besides wearing the color red what are other things that can give an athlete a competitive advantage Make a bullet-point list of advice for a coach to give to athletes Use phrases such as

Itrsquos a good idea to bullItrsquos absolutely necessary to bullYou should always bullBe sure to bullDonrsquot forget to bull

In Sports Red Is the Winning Color

Athens Greece

When opponents of a game are equally matched the team dressed in red is more likely to win according to a new study

British anthropologists Russell Hill and Robert Barton of the University of Durham reached that conclusion by studying the outcomes of boxing tae kwon do Greco-Roman wresting and freestyle wrestling matches at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens Greece

In each event Olympic staff randomly assigned red or blue clothing or body protection to competitors When competitors were equally matched with their opponent in fitness and skill the athletes wearing red were more likely to win

2009

14665793

1. play
2. pause
3. stop