I’m traveling through Europe this month, but I’ll be back with fresh writing soon. In the meantime, the floor’s yours: questions, thoughts, random musings, I’m all ears. Nothing is off limits.
1. I'm currently reading Patricia Highsmith's Ripley series, which is excellent! As for non-fiction, I am reading the biography of Hilma af Klint.
2. Haven't had time for any new shows since I hit the road a couple of months ago but I've been loving Interior Chinatown.
3. Depends on my mood: classical or ambient for work, electronic when I'm in the mood to DJ, and classic rock or Egyptian Arabic if playingbfrom my record collection. Also listening to audiobooks of some of Agatha Christies's Poirot series.
I watched the first couple of episodes with Jay before leaving for Egypt but them decided to read the book first. It was so good I devoured the rest of the series within days! They’re good but the first one is just magnificent. A perfect thriller IMO. Now I’m excited to see Andrew Scott embody Ripley again
I usually go book before film/TV, too. I was hooked from the first episode onward with this one, though. I'd seen the previous movie, too, so I had an idea of what might happen. I'm keen to check out the books now, too.
I had no idea what was coming! And Highsmith is such a talented yet entirely unpretentious writer that I breezed through the book in less than two days. Had me sweating at parts! My fav read in a while, especially in the thriller genre
I like it because it's also a crime story without a cop as the main character. I don't hate detective stories at all (I love the Erlendur and Montalbano series), It's just nice to find books which live in that world without the cop POV.
So many international sporting governing bodies have recently rebranded themselves as “World (insert name of sport)” instead of a version of“International Federation of (insert name of sport)”, in an attempt to retain control over the proliferation of privately funded global sport series instead of just overseeing countries and individual athletes competing against each other.
What do you see as the future of global-level sport. Will internationals still have relevance (with all that implies re state support and soft power projection), or will franchises, private sponsors, and (trans-national) clubs start to dominate?
Your journalism on sports and politics is unlike anyone else I have read. Thank you very much for the work you do. I hope one day I can contribute to your cause.
I am from India, and recently, in the last 2 weeks, we were dangerously close to a full-on war with our neighbour, Pakistan. Can you write an article about how cricket affects politics and vice versa, along with its effect on the people of India and Pakistan?
Hi Amartya, thanks so much for the kind words! Glad to have you as a subscriber. I briefly wrote about the role of sports in India and Pakistan following the terror attack in Kashmir but I am planning to go in depth on cricket soon. The sport has been a blindspot for me and I hope to change that asap
I'd like to hear about the new Chinese snooker world champion, and why on earth the UK won't invest in Sheffield, snooker's heartland, in the same way they invest in Wimbledon.
Yes, I heard about his win! Same person who was suspended on match fixing charges, right? His win also signals the growth of the sport in China and how it may eventually shift in that direction. The other concern is Saudi Arabia—I suspect the Saudi Masters is just the first step towards them trying to move the World Championships away from Sheffield. Truth is, this is partly the UK’s own doing. The government has courted Gulf state investments forever, basically begging the Gulf to buy up their cultural assets. And I’m not just talking about Newcastle United. I mean they have a stake in Heathrow Airport, bought Harrods etc. The UK is not really in a position to invest in Sheffield or in snooker. Wimbledon just happens to be one of the last bastions of British nostalgia for its past. They’ll cling onto that one even when everything else is sold off.
Mind you, I say this as an Egyptian who is watching his government sell off actual land to the UAE and Saudi, so I really empathize here
New follower here, I'm curious if you ever cover the changes in motor racing? I wrote recently about the upcoming Indy 500 and it's cultural impact, would love to know if you're following any series.
Hey Preston! Thanks for subscribing! So I haven't followed motor racing much but I have done a couple of pieces on F1 specifically. Actually, one of the earliest examples of in-person sportswashing in my life was I was living in Bahrain when the first F1 race took place there. At the time it was a huge deal and an early example of the influence the Gulf would eventually have and laid a blueprint for future sports and soft power plays in the region.
But with that said, I'm always open to covering new sports and events that touch on culture and socio-political elements. Indy 500 would be entirely new to me!
Wow, living in Bahrain when F1 arrives must have been something. Racing is an interesting case of the corporate influences being a lot more open and apparent (they're literally the teams), unlike some of the other cases of sports washing.
What are you....
1. Reading?
2. Watching?
3. Listening to?
1. I'm currently reading Patricia Highsmith's Ripley series, which is excellent! As for non-fiction, I am reading the biography of Hilma af Klint.
2. Haven't had time for any new shows since I hit the road a couple of months ago but I've been loving Interior Chinatown.
3. Depends on my mood: classical or ambient for work, electronic when I'm in the mood to DJ, and classic rock or Egyptian Arabic if playingbfrom my record collection. Also listening to audiobooks of some of Agatha Christies's Poirot series.
Did you watch the Ripley series on Netflix? We loved it.
I watched the first couple of episodes with Jay before leaving for Egypt but them decided to read the book first. It was so good I devoured the rest of the series within days! They’re good but the first one is just magnificent. A perfect thriller IMO. Now I’m excited to see Andrew Scott embody Ripley again
I usually go book before film/TV, too. I was hooked from the first episode onward with this one, though. I'd seen the previous movie, too, so I had an idea of what might happen. I'm keen to check out the books now, too.
I had no idea what was coming! And Highsmith is such a talented yet entirely unpretentious writer that I breezed through the book in less than two days. Had me sweating at parts! My fav read in a while, especially in the thriller genre
I like it because it's also a crime story without a cop as the main character. I don't hate detective stories at all (I love the Erlendur and Montalbano series), It's just nice to find books which live in that world without the cop POV.
Hi,
So many international sporting governing bodies have recently rebranded themselves as “World (insert name of sport)” instead of a version of“International Federation of (insert name of sport)”, in an attempt to retain control over the proliferation of privately funded global sport series instead of just overseeing countries and individual athletes competing against each other.
What do you see as the future of global-level sport. Will internationals still have relevance (with all that implies re state support and soft power projection), or will franchises, private sponsors, and (trans-national) clubs start to dominate?
Hi, Karim.
Your journalism on sports and politics is unlike anyone else I have read. Thank you very much for the work you do. I hope one day I can contribute to your cause.
I am from India, and recently, in the last 2 weeks, we were dangerously close to a full-on war with our neighbour, Pakistan. Can you write an article about how cricket affects politics and vice versa, along with its effect on the people of India and Pakistan?
Other than that, enjoy the holiday. Cheers.
Hi Amartya, thanks so much for the kind words! Glad to have you as a subscriber. I briefly wrote about the role of sports in India and Pakistan following the terror attack in Kashmir but I am planning to go in depth on cricket soon. The sport has been a blindspot for me and I hope to change that asap
https://www.sportspolitika.news/p/pahalgam-terror-india-pakistan-sports-diplomacy-cricket-politics?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
I'd like to hear about the new Chinese snooker world champion, and why on earth the UK won't invest in Sheffield, snooker's heartland, in the same way they invest in Wimbledon.
Yes, I heard about his win! Same person who was suspended on match fixing charges, right? His win also signals the growth of the sport in China and how it may eventually shift in that direction. The other concern is Saudi Arabia—I suspect the Saudi Masters is just the first step towards them trying to move the World Championships away from Sheffield. Truth is, this is partly the UK’s own doing. The government has courted Gulf state investments forever, basically begging the Gulf to buy up their cultural assets. And I’m not just talking about Newcastle United. I mean they have a stake in Heathrow Airport, bought Harrods etc. The UK is not really in a position to invest in Sheffield or in snooker. Wimbledon just happens to be one of the last bastions of British nostalgia for its past. They’ll cling onto that one even when everything else is sold off.
Mind you, I say this as an Egyptian who is watching his government sell off actual land to the UAE and Saudi, so I really empathize here
New follower here, I'm curious if you ever cover the changes in motor racing? I wrote recently about the upcoming Indy 500 and it's cultural impact, would love to know if you're following any series.
Hey Preston! Thanks for subscribing! So I haven't followed motor racing much but I have done a couple of pieces on F1 specifically. Actually, one of the earliest examples of in-person sportswashing in my life was I was living in Bahrain when the first F1 race took place there. At the time it was a huge deal and an early example of the influence the Gulf would eventually have and laid a blueprint for future sports and soft power plays in the region.
But with that said, I'm always open to covering new sports and events that touch on culture and socio-political elements. Indy 500 would be entirely new to me!
Wow, living in Bahrain when F1 arrives must have been something. Racing is an interesting case of the corporate influences being a lot more open and apparent (they're literally the teams), unlike some of the other cases of sports washing.
Look forward to your future work!