The Best in the World

Last night, I got into a debate about the true meaning of "good sportsmanship" and the effect that it is having on kids today. After seeing a video about a middle school wrestler who intentionally lost to a member of the opposing team who had severe cerebral palsy (CP), I posted the video on my Facebook page, stating that I thought the act by the student who intentionally lost was an act of good sportsmanship. This ignited quite a debate about why or why not the act was positive, or if it was in fact a negative. After doing some research, it was rather apparent that the students were not engaged in an actual match at the time, the main reason being that they were not in the same weight class. The backstory that I found was that the student with CP has the physical capability of an infant, but the mental capability of his peers. He wanted to wrestle, and so his coach made a phone call to the coach of the opposing team, who happened to be a friend of his. His only request was that the student who wrestled Jared, the student with CP, had a kind heart. It wasn't about weight class, it was about finding someone who wouldn't treat the match as a competition, but as a way to fulfill Jared's desire to get out on the mat like the rest of his teammates, despite his disability.

The majority of the comments that have been posted in relation to the video have been positive. However, the people who commented on my Facebook post took a different side, stating that if the student wanted to show true sportsmanship, he should have forfeited instead of helping Jared "pin" the opponent.

Although I didn't necessarily agree (and there was some very good private discussion about the matter), another good point was brought up through the comments. A former classmate of mine pointed out that allowing someone to win encouraged the mentality of "everyone is a winner" and provided kids with a sense of entitlement. I think that this is a very good point, and one that I wanted to talk about today.

I was recently at the craft store and saw a rack of ribbons that designated First Place, Second Place, etc. As I passed the display, I noticed something odd. The ribbons didn't just go up to Third Place and Honorable Mention, but instead had titles such as "Sixth Place" and even "Eleventh Place." I think that we have to draw the line somewhere, and that somewhere comes WAY before Eleventh Place in my opinion. I am an only child without children of my own, so maybe there is a small lapse of judgement in my opinion.

In our lives today, we place certain people on pedestals, giving them titles such as "Sexiest Man Alive" or "Best Swimmer in the World." What these people do to earn these so-called honors is without a doubt impressive, but the honors themselves are what baffle me a little bit. Take "Sexiest Man Alive" for example. When Channing Tatum was bestowed the title earlier this year, women all over the world flocked to buy People Magazine in the hopes of catching a glimpse of Tatum shirtless. In the effort of full disclose, I may or may not have been one of whose women...anyway, moving on. What makes someone sexy? It's a description the definition of which is argued across the globe and where no two people may define it the exact same way. One person likes blondes, the other brunettes. One likes muscular arms while the other goes for the abs. Just people People Magazine dubs someone the "Sexiest Man Alive" doesn't really mean anything in terms of the general consensus of the world's population.

Or how about the fact that Michael Phelps has been called The Greatest Swimmer of All Time. Sure, the guy definitely earns substantial bragging rights for his 22 Olympic Medals, 18 of those Gold,  33 World Championship Medals, 26 of those Gold, and the 39 world records he has set over his competitive swimming career. However, does that really make him the "Greatest Swimmer of All Time?" No. It means that out of everyone he has competed against or everyone who has competed and registered a specific time, that he has beaten them. Who knows, there could be a swimmer in some country that is better than him but has just never swam professionally or for the goal of achieving a specific time record.

All of this in consideration, I'm sick of people telling kids that they have to be "the best" or kids thinking that they have to compare themselves to others in order to achieve self worth. People need to realize that winning a sport, a challenge, or a game doesn't mean that you're the best. All that matters is that you did YOUR best. I have been so proud of Brian's wrestlers lately, not because they were wining their matches (far from it with the exception of the most recent one) but because they had continued to improve on their skills and performance. I'm not saying that you can't encourage kid's dreams, but I personally think that having fun and improving each time you attempt something is much more important than getting a ribbon for 11th place.

(For the record, the only instance this doesn't apply is to my blog, which is, in fact, the best in the world.)