The Early Beginnings Of Sports Criticism In The Iraqi Press: Al-Suhrawardi As A Case Study

This is a historical study in which we trace the origins of sports criticism in the Iraqi press and its practice as a form of editorial writing through the medium of the feature article. We have concluded that this art form was not recognized in the Iraqi press until the 1950s as an independent journalistic discipline with its own body of literature. From the early 1950s onward, Najm al-Din al-Suhrawardi emerged as the foremost journalist to practice this art; he was a champion in more than one sport, a successful administrator in the field of sports management, and later became the most prominent Iraqi academic figure in sports starting in the 1960s. Through an analysis of Al-Suhrawardi’s articles published in his column “Ruknuh” in Al-Zaman newspaper during the months of March, April, and May 1958—a column that was a regular feature during that period, we uncovered Al-Suhrawardi’s talent for professional—and indeed scientific—sports criticism, characterized by precision in diagnosing problems and proposing solutions to overcome them. In addition to the depth and precision of his arguments, he distinguished himself with a style of presentation, oscillating between satire and seriousness, that was perfectly suited to the problem at hand, and in all cases, he maintained complete professional integrity, to the point that he established a school of thought with its own distinct style of constructive sports criticism, as we have presented through Al-Suhrawardi’s perspective.