Speech- Will mathews

My parents have never competed in any athletics unless you count my dad’s one year of JV tennis. So when at the age of five I told them I wanted to play T-ball, the gateway to a world of sports, they had no clue what to expect. Many parents wonder whether it’s beneficial for their children to play sports, some are strong supporters and some are avidly against it. I’ve played many different sports, whether it was baseball, soccer, lacrosse, cross country, or even the occasional game of ultimate Frisbee, I can easily say I wouldn’t be the person I am today without them. It’s where I and so many others have built many long lasting friendships, learned how to be a part of a team, and to challenge myself at every opportunity, while getting great physical activity. You also may be thinking this isn’t a really important issue everyone plays sports but according to a recent study only 40 percent of children between 6 and 12 where regularly playing sports. Which is a very low percentage considering the many opportunities to play sports.

I read an article recently that said sports lead to aggressive behavior and bullying in kids. This is a common fear that parents have, afraid that there child will become a bully and be mean, due to a sporting environment. I highly disagree with this statement; sports are a unique space where kids can have an outlet for their aggression, all the negative feelings they have, they can let it all out on the field, whereas a kid who doesn’t play sports may take it out through other means such as bullying.

Physical activity is probably the most obvious benefit that sports can offer youth. This is more present now than it has ever been we live in an age driven by technology where children are spending vast majorities of their time sitting and watching TV or playing video games. It’s no surprise then that 17% of kids age 2-19 categorized as obese not just overweight, instead of 5% just 30 years ago. Sports give kids a fun way to exercise, it’s much easier to run and get fit if you’re doing it with a full team at your side then if you were doing it on your own.  70% of children who are overweight become obese as adults. It’s not surprising then that Sports playing youth tend to be much less overweight than those who don’t play. So by playing sports as a kid you may be setting yourself up for a more healthy rest of your life.

“For many young people it’s where they are first introduced to challenge, effort, and achievement.” This is from an interesting documentary on the history of little league baseball, justly named “Little league: A History” it brings forth the beliefs I have in the capability of sports. As put by Carl Stoltzs the founder of Little league Baseball “baseball is just a vehicle, I could teach them to hit, to pitch, to throw, to run, but the more important thing is the lesson that they can learn on the field” the main point being that the sport itself isn’t important, or how good you are, it doesn’t matter, but that the skills and other things you learn are to be gained. By giving a child challenges and making him put in effort into something they enjoy and then letting them see the reward of their hard work, you set them up for success; you give them ambition, a drive to do better. Which translates into the other areas of their lives, like their school work in which they can put forth the effort they learned on the field to achieve academic merit. Sports also give kids their first taste of competition, which is something that throughout their lives they will always be exposed to. Whether it is competing to get into a college or to get a job, there is always competition so why not get them ready at a younger age. If you think all this is just guess work and no real proof that sports are beneficial, the last two presidents of the united states grew up playing sports as did many others before them. Tina Fey and Ellen Degeneres both played high school tennis and went on to be famous. Simple enough concept sports can lead you on the path to success.

Dwayne Wade (NBA Player) once said “no team works without teamwork.” One of the most important skills learned from sports is how to be on a team and work well with others. Because no matter whom you are you will have to work with others in your life, whether you play sports or not, there will always be group projects in school, jobs in the work place that can’t be done alone, etc. The point is you have to get to know how to work well with others because it’s one of the fundamental things in life, it’s unavoidable. Trust me it’s better to learn how to do it when your 7 in a safe environment like on a soccer field than when your 17 in your high school chemistry class. Sports are also a great environment for shy kids, because a kid who is usually very quiet and doesn’t like to talk to anyone may have trouble getting to know people well enough to make friendships. So by giving him an environment with lots of kids their own age and a common activity they are much more likely to build relationships. Whether you’re shy or not sports are fantastic way to make friends I can say that some of my best friends are the ones I’ve been playing sports with for years.

Dictionary.com defines a sport as an athletic activity, which is true but what it doesn’t tell you the whole story. So In conclusion I hope that you will take these things into account if a day in the future when your kid asks you if he or she can sign up for little league or a YMCA soccer. Because the answer should be yes, the things that can be learned on the field or court or whatever you’re playing on are the introduction to a successful life. I don’t expect every kid to play college sports or even high school; they just need to play when they are young so they can be healthy while learning some of the most valuable life lessons

 

 

Harvard School of Public Health. "Child Obesity." Obesity Prevention Source. N.p., 8 Mar. 2012. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.

Little League: A History. Dir. Greg Matkosky. WVIA Public Media, 2014. Television.

Davis, Amanda. "Why Should Children Play Sports?" LIVESTRONG.COM. LIVESTRONG.COM, 12 Aug. 2013. Web. 07 Dec. 2014

Institute, Aspen. "Facts: Sports Activity and Children." Home. The Aspen Institute, 2104. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.