Organized Sports for Young People

Sports today are no longer fun and games. Teams are bigger, more competive, and some don't have time for beginners.

For years I played goalie on a soccer team and was pretty good, despite my height. I remember how excited I would get because I was helping my team. But I'll never forget the day I wasn't put in goal. It was the championship game, and I was just "too short" to play. After that I was crushed and didn't play for another three years.

I saw my little sister quit a club team because she wasn't getting enough playing time. I've seen her throw up because she was so nervous before a tournament. She was burned out by the time she was nine.

Some parents will push their kids way too hard. At soccer fields, you can hear parents screaming. At basketball games, parents yell at the refs, and it's the same at the baseball field. Some kids are punished just for losing a game. The children become angry and frustrated with the sport.

Despite all that, I'll never forget the friends I made, the feeling of getting that basket, or winning the playoffs. If it's the right league or coach, the game can be fun. Sports can help you keep in shape, make new friends, and have fun. But parents, coaches, and fans need to remember that it's just a game.

by Emily J-B (6/98)

The competitive world of sports is a place I've just recently discovered myself. It's a place in which my ambition and curiosity have prompted me to explore. Yet, now I have mixed feelings about sports.

Sports are a great alternative for kids nowadays. They keep teens out of trouble and give them something positive to do. Also, organized sports keep children and people of all ages physically fit, healthy, and strong. I must say sports have provided all these advantages for me.

On the other hand, people say that sports are too competitive, strenuous, and emotionally demanding for children, including teenagers. Adults argue that organized sports are killing "pick up" games and at the same time destroying childrens' creativeness and spontaneity. Then, parents claim coaches' bad and competitive behaviors rub off on players. But I think not all coaches are to blame. Parents themselves put excess pressure on their own kids, seemingly not even aware of the damage they could be causing.

From my prospective, sports are something I make myself do. Maybe I just want to fit in, or maybe i would be lost without them. Either way I look at sports as a fun job with a lot of benefits. A job, in which many want to meet the qualifications and only the stong succeed.

In conclusion, I once saw a quote, "The only difference between the champ and the chump is U [you]. "

by Trevor F. (6/98)

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