McNamee Student Essay Prize 2024
The British Philosophy of Sport Association (BPSA) invites submissions to the McNamee Student Essay Prize in the Philosophy and Ethics of Sport. The Prize is named in honour of Prof. Mike McNamee (KU Leuven and Swansea University), founder of the BPSA.
the results of
2024 edition
1
Winner
Danielle Mercado, with the paper:
“Navigating the Tension: Balancing Egalitarianism and Elitism in the Paralympic Movement”.
2
Runner-up
(on equal merit)
Xiner Tao, with the paper: "“Is the display of “unwillingness to fight” against sportsmanship”
Lucas Contador Dourado da Silva, for an essay titled “Failure as a Renunciation of Enjoyment: an Interpretation of Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Discourse”.
Commendation
1. Ke (Aria) Gong for an essay titled “Integrity exists not only in the game: an analysis of tennis governing bodies’ handling of Alexander Zverev’s domestic abuse allegations"
2. Tommaso Ropelato, for an essay titled “Reimaging talent: how genetic enhancement could shape the future of sports”
Both the winner and runner-up will have the opportunity to present their papers in the upcoming BPSA Work-In-Progress Online Seminar, showcasing their outstanding contributions to the philosophy of sport.
We warmly congratulate them on their achievements and look forward to engaging discussions inspired by their work.
Dr. Silvia Camporesi
Deputy Chair of the British Philosophy of Sport Association
Eligibility
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Candidates must be enrolled in a university undergraduate or graduate level course at the time of submission There is no geographical restriction on eligibility. Submissions must be single-authored and the candidate’s own work, and they must address an issue in the Philosophy or Ethics of Sport. Each candidate may submit one essay only, and submissions must be in English.​
IMPORTANT: the essay must be a new essay. Candidates are not allowed to submit essays previously submitted as coursework (Turnitin system will check if this is the case).
Criteria
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Essays may address any topic in the Philosophy or Ethics of Sport. In assessing submitted papers, the jury will place a strong emphasis on the following considerations:
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Originality of the essay topic and its treatment;
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Analytical rigour of the essay’s argument;
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Critical engagement with relevant philosophical literature
The jury reserves the right not to award a prize if submissions fail to achieve an appropriate standard. Candidates will not usually receive feedback on their submission. ​
To Enter
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Submissions should be emailed in Word or PDF format to: silvia.camporesi@gmail.com with subject line ‘BPSA Essay Prize 2024’ by Monday July 15th, at midnight. Candidates should submit two separate documents:
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Cover sheet that includes the candidate’s information (i.e. name, email address, university, and essay title);
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Essay document that is anonymized so as not to reveal the identity of the candidate.
Essay Format
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The word limit is 2500 words (excluding references). Please use Harvard style of referencing. Please avoid footnotes/endnotes.​
Prizes
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Winner – £500 cash (by bank transfer)
Runner-up – £200 cash (by bank transfer)
Commendations x 3 – each of the three commended essays will receive £100 cash (by bank transfer)
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The Winner and Runner-up will be invited to present their essays at a BPSA online work-in-progress seminar in the fall of 2024 and will be encouraged to submit their papers to the the Association’s journal Sport, Ethics and Philosophy:
https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/rsep20/current
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For any questions, get in touch, and have fun writing!
Dr Silvia Camporesi
Deputy Chair British Philosophy of Sport Association
https://silviacamporesiresearch.org/