Cyborg-athletes, Pressurization and Integrity of Sport

Abstract

In the debate on cyborg-athletes in sport, rightly so, (un)fairness was the central point of consideration this far. However, with this paper, we make a claim that in cyborgization cases, together with (un)fairness, another problem should be considered as well - the pressure that cyborgization can put on other athletes, sporting communities and the integrity of sport. In order to make our case we will first critically examine notions of cyborg, cyborgization and cyborg-athletes; secondly, we will discuss the coercion argument and propose changing it into the pressurization argument; thirdly, we will critically examine the concept of integrity of sport; and finally, we will provide ethical guidelines for cyborgization of/in sports.