Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Sports and Arts
Argentina is well ahead of other Latin
American countries in terms of sporting
prowess and artistic creativity. It is a
world-class nation in soccer and several
other sports, including tennis, golf, polo,
and hockey. At the 2012 Olympics
Argentina took home a gold medal in
taekwondo, silver in women's field hockey,
and bronzes in men's tennis and sailing. An
Argentine has also won the US Open Golf
Championship. However, it is in soccer that
Argentina's passions spill onto the streets.
Past legends such as Alfredo di Stefano,
Gabriel Batistuta, Mario Kempes, and Diego
Maradona are still revered as demi-gods,
while Lionel Messi is a current favorite.
Buenos Aires's most important cultural
institute, Teatro Colón, is where famous
classical music artistes, including pianist
Martha Argerich, conductor Daniel
Barenboim, and composer Osvaldo
Golijov, have performed. While there
is always a huge turnout for rock concerts
by visiting international bands, many
young Argentinians prefer their rock
nacional . Argentinian pop and rock have
been politicized since the 1970s, when
the band Sui Generis recorded
Argentinian pop band Miranda at a performance
anti-establishment songs in the midst
of the military dictatorship. International
critics often point out that there is,
through the influence of tango, a
melancholy in all Argentinian music.
While very few Argentinians actually
dance to the famous rhythm, urbanites
enjoy Carlos Gardel, the Bing Crosby of
Argentinian tango.
After the heady days of the Latin
American boom during the middle of
the 20th century, few Argentinian writers
have won international acclaim. For many,
the works of Jorge Luis Borges and Julio
Cortázar remain the benchmarks by
which all literature must be measured.
Nonetheless, Argentinians are avid readers;
the annual Feria de Libro in Buenos Aires
attracts huge audiences, and the pub-
lishing of new books by contemporary
writers such as Ana María Shua, Pablo de
Santis, and Tomás Eloy Martínez are major
events in the cultural calendar.
Cinema is popular in the country.
In the last few years, a new school of
cinéma verité has developed, which, as
well as scooping up prizes in prestigious
international film festivals, has given
the country a register with which to
debate social realities in the post-1983
democratic period.
Lionel Messi playing against the Mexico team
 
Search WWH ::




Custom Search