Hurting Youth with Sports
Our youth have ample adult-driven and adult-organized programs in which they can participate. They’re dragged all over the country to sporting events, hurried off to the next competition and pressured into hours of practice and preparation for…well, take your pick.
Many adults feel as though providing adolescents with non-stop activity serves to build trust and relationship between the two. Adults couldn’t be more wrong according to several experts on this subject. Chap Clark PhD., in his groundbreaking study, Hurt (2004), in which he immersed himself in the lives of hundreds of adolescents, concluded—“these activities are no longer for or about the students; they are for and about the adults in charge.” And, of course, our adolescents aren’t dumb; they pick up on the self-service of the adults. What follows is a widening of the gap between adult and teen relationships and an essential abandonment of the adolescent culture.
Sports aren’t bad. In fact, playing sports can provide a positive and extremely fun experience. Athletics can bring life to a child’s heart. But organized sports have in essence murdered the fun. The adults and parents who run and facilitate little league and high school athletics have increasingly created an atmosphere of intense competition relegating the fun to winning and out-doing others despite the costs. Practice times have increased. The stakes are higher. Kids face rejection and scorn for not performing. They’re hurt and tired. Striking out or missing a free-throw have become genuine fears. Adolescents feel like pawns in an adult chess match for the Little League title, in which the winning adult will find glory.
We, the adults, should be ashamed of ourselves. We’ve got to do something about this tragedy. What happened to the joy of playing sports? Why do we subject eight-year old boys to the humiliation of riding the pine because they’re not good enough?
Christians should lead the way in the fight to reclaim the joy of sports and the spirit of healthy competition. We should war against the self-centered and ego-driven forces behind too many of our sports organizations and public school athletics. No longer should we stand by and allow arrogant little league coaches to maneuver and position for the championship at the expense of our kid’s self-worth (example: I’m afraid you won’t play today Billy. This game is too important!).
To be fair, many Christians coach, and they do a wonderful job maintaining the proper perspective in athletics. I hope God continues to bless them and we continue to support them as they truly love our kids. May they increase!
I leave you with the real words of a former high school girl. Let it sink in.
I always played sports until I blew out my ankle and had reconstructive surgery. At that point I went from JV volleyball, varsity basketball, and varsity softball to the girl with the blown ankle. The remainder of my high school career I played only volleyball, when I could fit my foot in my shoe. So everything I once identified myself with was gone. I slipped into a depression. I started doing drugs and skipping school.
Many adults feel as though providing adolescents with non-stop activity serves to build trust and relationship between the two. Adults couldn’t be more wrong according to several experts on this subject. Chap Clark PhD., in his groundbreaking study, Hurt (2004), in which he immersed himself in the lives of hundreds of adolescents, concluded—“these activities are no longer for or about the students; they are for and about the adults in charge.” And, of course, our adolescents aren’t dumb; they pick up on the self-service of the adults. What follows is a widening of the gap between adult and teen relationships and an essential abandonment of the adolescent culture.
Sports aren’t bad. In fact, playing sports can provide a positive and extremely fun experience. Athletics can bring life to a child’s heart. But organized sports have in essence murdered the fun. The adults and parents who run and facilitate little league and high school athletics have increasingly created an atmosphere of intense competition relegating the fun to winning and out-doing others despite the costs. Practice times have increased. The stakes are higher. Kids face rejection and scorn for not performing. They’re hurt and tired. Striking out or missing a free-throw have become genuine fears. Adolescents feel like pawns in an adult chess match for the Little League title, in which the winning adult will find glory.
We, the adults, should be ashamed of ourselves. We’ve got to do something about this tragedy. What happened to the joy of playing sports? Why do we subject eight-year old boys to the humiliation of riding the pine because they’re not good enough?
Christians should lead the way in the fight to reclaim the joy of sports and the spirit of healthy competition. We should war against the self-centered and ego-driven forces behind too many of our sports organizations and public school athletics. No longer should we stand by and allow arrogant little league coaches to maneuver and position for the championship at the expense of our kid’s self-worth (example: I’m afraid you won’t play today Billy. This game is too important!).
To be fair, many Christians coach, and they do a wonderful job maintaining the proper perspective in athletics. I hope God continues to bless them and we continue to support them as they truly love our kids. May they increase!
I leave you with the real words of a former high school girl. Let it sink in.
I always played sports until I blew out my ankle and had reconstructive surgery. At that point I went from JV volleyball, varsity basketball, and varsity softball to the girl with the blown ankle. The remainder of my high school career I played only volleyball, when I could fit my foot in my shoe. So everything I once identified myself with was gone. I slipped into a depression. I started doing drugs and skipping school.
posted by Josh Linton at
11:31 AM
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