Does “Winning” Get a Bad Rap?
Spring is finally here, and there are a few sure signs that it has arrived: the birds chirping outside at daybreak; the arrival of daylight savings time and longer daylight hours; kids out in the neighborhood burning off some of the energy they accumulated over a long winter spent mostly indoors; and spring cleaning, the annual top-to-bottom scrubbing of the house that “officially” puts an end to the winter season.
Whether you have already completed your spring cleaning rituals or are still trying to talk yourself into getting started, there’s a good chance you’ll be cleaning an ever-increasing collection of trophies and awards collected from your children’s activities. And there’s also a good chance that many of these awards have nothing to do with winning a championship, tournament, or competition.
A generation ago, kids played sports in organized leagues. They played because they enjoyed playing. Some went home with trophies, most did not. It did not diminish their enjoyment if they did not get an award. Today, if your child has played sports for a few years, it’s likely that there are several trophies, medals, and/or awards in his or her bedroom. Many youth sports leagues and coaches give out “participation” awards. Kids are essentially being rewarded for just showing up.
The participation-era has been spawned partly as a backlash against a culture that too often over-emphasized winning. A few years ago, it seemed that we couldn’t go more than a week without hearing about an overzealous coach humiliating young athletes in the name of winning. But the pendulum has mostly swung back, and setting winning as a team or individual goal is now vilified by many.
Without an attempt to win, an activity is no longer defined as “sport.” According to Wikipedia, “A sport is commonly defined as an organized, competitive, and skillful physical activity requiring commitment and fair play. It is governed by a set of rules or customs. In a sport the key factors are the physical capabilities and skills of the competitor when determining the outcome (winning or losing).”
If we are to teach life lessons through sports, we must also teach kids how to compete. There is nothing wrong with teams or individuals entering a contest with a desire to win. The definition of sport states that the contest requires “commitment and fair play.” Commitment requires preparation, and teaching kids to be prepared for competition and to compete fairly has to be an essential part of youth sports.
When part of an overall approach with the proper perspective, winning builds confidence, increases motivation, teaches kids how to be gracious winners and how to accept and learn from defeat, and demonstrates the value of working hard toward a goal. These are all valuable lessons.
As coaches, parents, and administrators, it’s our responsibility to make sure that winning remains an admirable goal. We can do so by keeping it in the proper perspective. It’s when winning is confined to the narrowest of definitions and is measured solely by winning percentages and scoreboards that it is rightly condemned. In youth sports especially, winning must include social development, fun, competition, self-esteem, respect, and fair play. It must be one part of an overall philosophy that rewards effort, preparation, teamwork, and commitment, not just skill level. It’s OK to win within the rules, and it’s OK to win as a team. It’s never acceptable to sacrifice your principles or a young athlete’s self-esteem for the sake of winning a game.
3 notes /
