Living “extreme”: Adventure sports, media and commercialisation

Abstract

Participation in extreme sports, sometimes called adventure sports, action sports or even individualistic sports, has vastly increased in the last 20 years. The terms are still up for debate, only vaguely defined and are often used interchangeably. Both viewing and participation in this young sports phenomenon is on the rise, but the importance of it for the world of sports, media sport and the opportunities for sponsorship are little explored. This paper will examine the emergence of extreme sports and the connected industry, the reasons why people are enthralled by the new phenomenon and the opportunities it poses for communicators.