Basic HTML Version
44
managers, the candid admission was
made that parents are the real problem
at these games. "Mothers, especially
mothers," the manager said, "vocif–
erously argue a cal! with the umpire.
They really get excited when the umpire
makes a bad call." Poor sportsmanship
in parents can lead to no sportsmanship
in their children.
Besides the possible psychological
damage to young minds, there is often
physicnl harm
done to young people
which gives sorne cause for alarm.
FREE BOOKLET
-
lf you
do not yet hove o copy of
the new full-color booklet
The
Seven
Laws al
Suc:cess,
send your request to our
mailing office neorest you.
See oddresses inside front
cover.
In 1969, Dr. Nicoholas
J.
Gian–
nestras, orthopedic surgeon at the Uni–
versity of Cincinnati told a meeting of
the nation's top surgeons, "The blame
should be placed on
parmts and coaches
who ptll pt·estíge and wímling ahead of
the chíld's welfm·e.
As a result of this
adult
win-atti111de,
Jittle league sports
are a health hazard to young athletes."
He charged overzealous adults with
ruining the futures of talented young
baseball and football players by forcing
them to play beyond their physical
capabilities.
A really concerned youth manager or
coach will not endanger the future of a
young athlete for the glorious present.
A detrimental zeal to push a young tal–
ent too early may climinate his great fu–
ture potential.
The
PLAIN TRUTH
Winning and Sportsmanship
in Perspective
The point is this: More emphasis des–
perately needs to be placed on how the
game is played, and not so much on
how to win. What most athletes fail to
realize is that they can be intense com–
petitors and still not soil sportsmanship
ethics. It takes more effort, but it can be
done.
This will obviously be considered
nalve
in
a sports world where $10,000
per player may ride on one kick of the
ball or one last-second basket. Any time
a team plays to win at al! costs, the
lines between clean and unclean conduct
can become fuzzy. But at an early age
children need to be taught to play the
best game they possibly can, with heavy
stress on sportsmanship, teamwork, and
emotional control.
A11)'0ne who does hís
best should have no cause Jo be upset
abottl the 01ftcome of the game.
If
a game erupts into fighting, bicker–
ing and bad attitudes - no matter what
the final seore - everybody loses
!
Above
all,
parents, children, athletes
aod coacbes alike should have a bal–
anced approach toward sports. When
people go so overboard that they can
rattle off name after name of sports fig–
ures, but couldo't remember the name
of the President of the United States or
his Cabinet members, priorities are a
little out of order.
There are still some fine examples in
sports.
Let's
look to thcse, and enjoy
the fine teamwork, and the beauty of
strong, uncrippled, well-coordinated
athletes in action. Applaud good indi–
vidual and team effort, and de-empha–
size who won or who lost.
Young athletic aspirants should emu–
late the proper examples of sportsman–
ship, perseverance, courage, drive and
character. When it comes to soiling
sportsmanship ethics to make a point,
stop there.
We need a change in the "win-at-all–
costs" - especially the
other
person's
cost - approach. Proper values need to
be substituted in its place, and the adage
changed to "Sportsmanship ..tt all
costs"! Then and only then can there be
a reviva! of sportsmanship and character
building in the world of sports.
This is not merely a "pie-in-the-sky"
hope for a sports millennium. This is
Decembcr 1971
the answer today's experts from many
fields call for. Drs. Ogilvie and Tutko,
in the
Psychology Today
study quoted
above, concluded that, "Eventually, the
world of sport is going to take the
emphasis
off
winning-at-any-cost," and
begin to once again emphasize the indi–
vidual athlete's contribution to team,
society, and self.
Perhaps then the old sportsmanship
motto will be revived - this time with
sincerity - "lt's not whether you win or
lose, but how you play the game
!"
O
The
UNITED NATIONS-
(Conthmed fronr page 6)
public, on a wodd stage, it is better to
be a Minister speaking to his con–
victions than an Ambassador speaking
to his instructions."
Following any debate, the emphasis
is then to choose sides and vote. This
often forces U.N. members to
record
rather than negotiate their differences.
A victO!')' by votes seems more desirable
to many than an agreement by
consensus.
Israel's Foreign Minister, Abba Eban,
told the General Assembly this year:
"In the work of the United Nations
there is a strong accent on public con–
troversy and a relative neglect of prívate
conciliation ....Debate, not negotiation,
still dominates the United Nations
practice."
"The test of achievement," he went
on to say, "should not be how many
resolutions we have voted but how
many solutions we have achieved."
Keeping the Peace
The main role in maintaining world
peace is assigned by the U.N. Charter
not to the General Assembly but to the
srnaller, 15-member Security Council.
It
is this body that is empowered to meet
any time the peace of nations is endan–
gered and to take the appropriate action
- even to the point of sending in
troops - to see to it that the peace is
either maintained or restored.
The People's Republic of China has
now become a permanent member of
this body. With this membership, it was
given the right and responsibility of
exercising veto power. How China uses
this power and responsibility will be in-