BETTING AND SPORT

Dominion, Volume 32, Issue 148, 18 March 1939, Page 10

BETTING AND SPORT

It appears, after investigation, that betting, in which members of the Wellington Boxing Association participated, was responsible for the suspicion that "at least two of the professional contests which took place last year had not been “straight.” Betting on boxing is a breach of the law, but that does not prevent a considerable proportion of patrons of the “noble art” from wagering on the results.. 1 hat is all the more reason why members of the Boxing Association should refrain from doing so. They are responsible for the control. of the contests, for the standard of sportsmanship maintained, and. in general, for the reputation of the sport. Furthermore, they have the opportunity, which the general public has not, of closer contacts with the competitors. For that reason alone their impartiality and disinterestedness should be above suspicion. It is historically true that many sports have been vitiated by the element of gambling which has been allowed to enter into the competitions. The public has heard frequently of competitors having been “bought,” of matches having been “sold,” in order that organized betting schemes may be brought off with handsome returns to the conspirators. It may be humanly impossible to eliminate the gambling element, but there is a vast difference between the morally harmless sporting bet and the “queering” of a contest for. sheer sordid gain. The action of the Wellington Boxing Association m taking steps to safeguard the reputation of the contests it controls was quite justified. But it is regrettable that it should havfi been necessary.