What has Skydiving to do with Authentic Existence? Prof Gunnar Breivik (Pt2) – Meaningful Sport Series

What has skydiving to do with authentic existence? Can we become more authentic through high-risk sport? And why are discontinuities and breakdowns important when we try to understand meaning in human life?

In the second part of our discussion with Professor Gunnar Breivik, we delve deeper into Heidegger' philosophy and key ideas including being-towards-death, authenticity, breakdown, and temporality and think about these concepts in relation to the sporting human being. Professor Breivik does a wonderful job in explaining complex ideas in a very accessible language and shares his stories about researching and doing skydiving as well.

Gunnar Breivik is Professor Emeritus in Sport Social Sciences at the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, where he was Rector of the School 1999-2005. His pioneering work in philosophy of sport over several decades has covered a range of areas including studies of intentionality, knowledge, skills, and other aspects of human experience and action in sport. Moreover, he has conducted many empirical studies in sport and physical activity from psychological and sociological perspectives, including studies on personality in high-risk sports.