For centuries, sport has brought out the best qualities of human character: kindness, open-mindedness, resilience, camaraderie and team spirit. Sport helps to overcome hardships and boost morale. Many books and films have been created to describe and highlight the role of sport in society. Many of them tell amazing stories about the lives and achievements of individual athletes and teams that inspire both their contemporaries and future generations. Over the centuries, sport has united people and nations, fostered mutual understanding and facilitated the resolution of conflicts. Indeed, at the beginning of history, wars ceased with the start of the Olympic Games and sporting competitions united yesterday's enemies and rivals. Today, athletes are seen as ambassadors of goodwill and peace. This does not mean that sport cannot in turn cause conflict, especially if competitiveness goes too far and sport begins to be used for selfish or political purposes. Although there are many sports books and movies, surprisingly few of them depict sports. role of athletes and importance of sport during the darkest times of the 20th century – the Second World War. It may seem at first glance that when war engulfed the entire European continent, there was neither time nor place for sport. However, in war-torn countries, sport and athletes have often given people a breath of fresh air and hope. Even though dictators and regimes used sport for their own benefit and propaganda, a true positive spirit of sport prevailed. Comparison Statement: I chose to analyze and compare two captivating stories about great athletes during World War II: the novel "Road to Valor" by McConnon and McConnon and the film "Match" by director Andrey Malyukov. The plots of the two...... middle of paper ...... that they even petitioned the Nazi government to spare the lives of Start's great footballers. This in turn means that sport brings out the best in people – true sportsmen respect their opponents and accept defeat. In summary, while the book and film depict athletes from different countries who competed in different sports – an Italian cyclist and a Ukrainian football team – the key unifying theme is their sportsmanship, their courage in fighting against evil, their perseverance and, therefore, their desire to inspire others to be courageous and strong. Heroes from two different countries did one important thing in common: they won and inspired others to fight and win. The cyclist depicted in the book lived to tell his story, while the footballers depicted in the film died. Yet the memories of these courageous athletes will live on, as will their exploits...