By Aman Patil ’17, Staff Writer

In today’s pop culture, athletes are regarded as perfect machines; they are depicted as robots that produce the same results on the field or court, day in and day out. We often disregard athletes as normal people, and in this, fail to recognize that they have normal human flaws, and thus, we do not afford them the same right to privacy. Pop culture fails to understand that athletes too, like all humans, can have personal issues and dilemmas. Athletes are placed on a pedestal of unattainable standards by society – a pedestal from which they are bound to fall. Ultimately, they will upset and disappoint the mainstream media.

Star athletes such as New York Yankees’ pitcher C.C. Sabathia and former Los Angeles Laker Lamar Odom are two recent examples of athletes who have fallen off this high pedestal and into the dog pound of pop culture and mainstream media.

C.C. Sabathia, a long time ace of the New York Yankees starting rotation, has been a dependable and mainstay pitcher for the team throughout its rebuilding process. Although over the last few seasons, he has lost some of his velocity and has been nagged by injuries, Sabathia, who propelled the Yankees to a World Series Crown in 2009, is an experienced workhorse. This season Sabathia had six wins on the mound, including his impressive victory on October 1^st that clinched a playoff birth for the Yankees. However, arguably the biggest news surrounding Sabathia this season was his withdrawal from the team on October 5^th,, just one day before a Yankees playoff game, to check himself into rehab for alcoholism. Sabathia claimed that he had been dealing with alcoholism since 2012, but had finally reached his personal limit and decided it was time to check himself into rehab. Yankees and sports fans worldwide were shocked by the news. Sabathia’s absence at the climax of his team’s season

left some fans puzzled, some disappointed, some angry, and some happy about his decision. Will Schwartz, ’17, gave his immediate reaction to the news; “I was shocked. I didn’t see it coming at all.” Like Will, Anthony Giachin, ’17, also said he was surprised. “He didn’t have a great season, but I didn’t think that he was struggling with something like this (alcoholism). I was shocked to see him leave the team right before the playoffs.” Many fans simply could not fathom how this happened. Why? Mainstream society has engrained in our minds the idea that by nature, athletes are infallible. Everyday sports fans could not understand that someone as famous as C.C. Sabathia was dealing with the same disease and problem that millions of other “normal” people deal with every day.

Lamar Odom, a star in the NBA, won championships for the Los Angeles Lakers in both 2009 and 2010. Odom, now 36, has been out of the league for about a year; his last NBA appearance came as a member of the New York Knicks in May of 2014. Odom is also famous for his marriage with reality TV star Khloé Kardashian. Reentering the center of mainstream media, on October 13, 2015 Odom was found unconscious at a *brothel in Nevada. Odom was at the brothel for over three days and was said to have snorted cocaine and taken over 10 herbal supplements to enhance sex performance during that same period. According to the owner of the brothel, Dennis Hof, Odom spent about $75,000 during his stay at the brothel. After being found, Odom was rushed to a hospital in Las Vegas, where he was put on life support, as he was in a coma in critical condition. Since then, Odom has been transferred to a hospital in Los Angeles and has been making significant steps towards regaining full health. While he has been making improvements in his speech and cognitive thinking, there are still major concerns about his long-term health, specifically his memory; numerous sources have stated that Odom is still having trouble recognizing friends and family. People around the world, both sports and entertainment lovers were shocked by news and reports about Odom’s health. Elijah Lipkin, ’17, similar to in Sabathia’s case, repeated, ”I was shocked. I had no idea that he was going through this and was so close to throwing his entire life away.” Most people had no idea that someone like Lamar Odom, a star athlete, could be suffering from drug and substance abuse. Many argue that this is because mainstream media has made athletes such infallible members in our society that it’s impossible for us to recognize that like all humans, athletes have flaws. Although at times this works in favor of athletes, as people don’t see negative aspects of them (domestic abuse in the NFL), it can hurt them as well. As ESPN writer Jon Rankin wrote, in some people’s eyes, this infallibility “make[s] those with extraordinary abilities {athletes} unworthy of forgiveness and redemption.” (Jon Rankin on Athletes)

Moving forward it is important to recognize that athletes are human, too. It is essential for pop culture and media to recognize athletes as people – people who make mistakes and have their own personal battles outside of the sports world. There is a life for everyone beyond sports.

*Note: Nevada is the only American state with legalized prostitution.