As we all adjust to the shift in available daylight hours, for our young people (or young at heart!) it also beckons the change in sporting seasons.
Over the last year there have been some hotly debated issues, including televising youth sport, early specialisation, poor side-line behaviour and a cry to reduce the emphasis on competition at young ages. This led to Sport New Zealand launching Balance is Better, an informative and educational platform where a more balanced approach to youth sport is championed. It has been encouraging to see it gain more widespread support.
Angela Visek of Washington State University is one of a number of academics, some even based in New Zealand who have dedicated their careers to researching sport and physical activity in children and youth. A recent study looked into the reasons why children play sport….according to them, with surprising results!
- Fun!
- Trying your best
- Getting playing time
- Playing well together as a team
- Getting along with team-mates
With a large group of youth surveyed, other reasons cited were, “Mum & Dad supporting me from the sideline”, the “halftime snacks” and even “the van ride to the fields”. In contrast, winning ranked a lowly 48th, while playing in tournaments ranked even lower at 63rd.
Since the turn of the millennium youth sport has rapidly evolved to be more competitive and specialised, with academies popping up everywhere including almost all high schools. In doing so we have failed to see the difference between the norm and the exception. Child prodigies like Tiger Woods are not the typical path to success that most elite athletes have walked. By structuring our sporting organizations, schools, and seasons to ‘build’ the next superstar; a trail of destruction is left in the wake. Countless young people quit sport, get injured or burnt out and become sedentary. This can cause irreparable damage to a lifetime of enjoyment from physical activity and related health and wellbeing.
As a parent of three competitive and lively boys we have two simple family rules when it comes to all sports or physical activity. Have fun, and try your hardest. With the new season of sport approaching, take some time to ask your child what they enjoy most about sport. Try to keep this front and centre at all times because both the short and long term impact will be profound.
Nb. Written as Health columnist for the Hibiscus Matters.
