For many sports fans, the rhythm of the seasons is defined by the games they contain.  The year begins with college football bowl games, and progresses towards the Super Bowl, March Madness, Major League Baseball, the NBA and NHL Finals, the World Series, and the start of another football season.  The even-numbered years are distinguished by an Olympiad or a World Cup.  The scores and structures of athletic seasons keep time in a logical, orderly way.

For twenty years, “The Best American Sports Writing” series has supplemented this rhythm with stories that both touch on the lesser-known sports such as rowing, cycling, swimming, and ultra marathons and the unique cultures of the games and activities we love.  Senior Series Editor Glenn Stout has given readers hundreds of stories over the past twenty years, all of which touch on the human side of competition and remind us of the ways in which playing and following sports can enrich our lives.

This presentation reviews the series’ landmark stories, from the investigative to the biographic, and looks to connect each one to the broader themes present in sport.  In engages with ideas beyond the games themselves, seeking to explore the personal side of athletic competition and articulate the greater meaning that can be garnered from both practice and play.