Ameye Thomas, Gils Bieke, Delheye Pascal
Research Centre for the History of Sport and Kinesiology, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Heverlee, Belgium.
Int J Hist Sport. 2011;28(2):205-39. doi: 10.1080/09523367.2011.537911.
During the belle époque, Belgium was a trend-setting nation in many domains, including motorised sports. Belgian automobile racers and pilots shattered world records and became international stars. Striking was the shift in sports. Indeed, around 1896, sporting members of the leisure class stepped from the bicycle into the automobile and, around 1908, from the automobile into the airplane. Although these motorised sports were extremely expensive, this article shows that sportsmen and sportswomen from the working class could achieve upward social mobility through their performances. The achievements of these motorised pioneers had a major impact and wide-ranging significance. They laid the foundations for the expansion of the automobile industry and the emergence of civilian and military aviation.
在美好时代,比利时在包括机动化运动在内的许多领域都是引领潮流的国家。比利时的汽车赛车手和飞行员打破了世界纪录,成为国际明星。体育运动的转变引人注目。事实上,大约在1896年,休闲阶层的体育成员从自行车转向了汽车,大约在1908年,又从汽车转向了飞机。尽管这些机动化运动极其昂贵,但本文表明,工人阶级的男女运动员可以通过他们的表现实现向上的社会流动。这些机动化先驱者的成就产生了重大影响和广泛意义。他们为汽车工业的扩张以及民用和军事航空的出现奠定了基础。