Winning Isn't Everything (Anymore)

Another lost season for our beloved Los Angeles Clippers has got us thinking about what fate our team would have faced in a less forgiving age. It's easy to forget that sportsmanship is a rather recent innovation, and that athletes in the ancient world often faced dire consequences should they lose a single contest. We're not necessarily speaking of the obvious examples, like those poor Roman gladiators or unfortunate Aztec ballplayers. The penalty for poor athletic performance wasn't always ...