Cork author Tadhg Coakley on the parallels between sport and art  

In his new book, The Game, Tadhg Coakley mixes essay and memoir to look at the role of sport in our lives 

Tadhg Coakley, author of The Game: A Journey into the Heart of Sport. Picture: Denis Minihane

Is sport art? Depending on their preference, sports fans would certainly argue that when they watch Patrick Horgan send a sliotar soaring over the bar, Lionel Messi’s dazzling dribbling skills, or Katie Taylor land a punch with precise power, they are equally as transported as someone listening to Mozart or surveying a Picasso. 

The role of sport in our lives is one of the many interesting topics explored by Tadhg Coakley in his latest book, a blend of essay and memoir called The Game, A Journey into the Heart of Sport. In it, he discusses how sport shaped his own life and why it is ultimately an expression of ourselves and our humanity, whether we are participants or spectators.