DOI: 10.18848/2152-7857/cgp/a408 ISSN: 2152-7865

Agonistic Embodiment in Tennis

Can Büyükbay
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<p>This article introduces the concept of agonistic embodiment to the sociology of sport through an analysis of tennis as a distinctive site where cultural capital, political contestation, and individual agency intersect in embodied practice. It develops a theoretically integrated framework that draws on sociological, political, and phenomenological perspectives to show how tennis both reproduces and contests social hierarchies through embodied performance. Rather than treating the sport as a purely recreational activity, the article conceptualizes tennis as a field in which style and bodily practice become mechanisms through which power and identity are enacted and negotiated. Drawing on selected cases from international tennis, the analysis demonstrates how phenomena such as athlete activism and the contestation of racial and gender norms reveal the dynamics of agonistic embodiment. By synthesizing these dimensions, the article develops agonistic embodiment as a conceptual lens that highlights how tennis magnifies the intersections of culture, politics, and identity. In doing so, it positions tennis as a distinctive and underexplored domain within the sociology of sport, contributing to broader debates on power and political expression.</p>

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