The Real Picture
As summer winds down and youth sports leagues close out their seasons, sports pages for the local newspapers will have more than a few “feel-good” stories and pictures of children and their “successful” teams. Coaches will issue the standard quotes of how the “win” wasn’t as important as having fun and how teaching good sportsmanship is the ultimate goal, and all the kids will be huddled together smiling with their trophies. And of course, there are the parents, beaming over their child’s achievement, telling all who will listen how hard work and perseverance paid off.
click here http://www.waheyboys.com/2009/Aug/5/RealPicture.html to read what the Wahey Boys think.
Comments
I agree wholeheartedly with Stan and Harry's recent assessments of the parts of the youth sports culture that have gone awry, and I think this is the right time to bring up these points, given the late summer tournament frenzy at hand. But as a life long coach and continued wannabe athlete who has worked hard to continue playing competitive sports into my 50's, I just want to remind everyone that there is great beauty and power in the games themselves, and that we need to work hard to teach this to our kids, so that the beauty of the games as an ongoing part of their lives is not lost to the bruises of the youth sports culture. No organized culture is perfect, but if we apply hyperfocus on the bad parts, we may lose track of all of the good that comes from healthy participation in competitive sports.
Posted by: Paul Niles | August 5, 2009 02:15 PM