(Aeon) – Selfishness channels ambition, envy drives competition, pride aids the win. Does it take a bad person to be a good athlete?

Globally, there are 567 track and field athletes currently ineligible to compete in the sport due to doping infractions, and these are just the ones who were caught. There is an epidemic of cheating behaviours in athletics. Those who get away with it often outperform athletes who compete above reproach. Cheating makes them faster.

This might press us to wonder about the relationship between moral character and athletic performance, in broader terms. What if vices make us competitive? What if good character has a performance cost? (Read More)