Sports as affordable opportunities for participation

By Dr. Lynn M. Jamieson

Being involved in sports is not just a matter of buying equipment and heading to an open field, court, or other playing area in one’s neighborhood.  Maybe sport interests start there, but they are only brief starts for anyone who wants to learn the skills and become more proficient in developing a sport interest.  Gone are the days when the nearby “sandlot” could produce Major League Baseball stars regardless of their socioeconomic level. Also, school-based or community-based neighborhood programs are virtually non-existent and have been replaced with programs that require transportation to a center or complex in order to take lessons and get involved in league play.  In addition, the cost to enroll in even a starter instructional program may not be affordable for all people. 

According to a survey conducted in 2016 by Ameritrade of 1001 parents with children involved in sports, 60% of the respondents had a level of concern for the cost of participation. It was found that 63% spent $100-499 per month for their children’s sport participation, and 18% spent $1000 or more per month.  Further, approximately 60% of the respondents indicated that they needed to be more aware of the financial cost and impacts on their overall financial condition. (1).

Cost issues are also reflected in a survey conducted by the Aspen Institute regarding youth sport participation.  It was reported that while parents seem to be willing to pay a considerable amount of money for an array of 21 sports that averaged $693 per sport annually, parents in lower income brackets found that their child was forced to quit due to prohibitive costs of participation.  Overall, it was also found that on average, children quit sports in great numbers by age 11, down two years from previous surveys (2).

Studies also show that parents and players want their children to have fun when they participate in sports, and many feel that this is lacking as sports become more and more competitive, and travel takes up much more time.  As a result, the dropout rate for travel sports is much higher, and parents seek recreational sports offered locally that are either free or offered at low cost.  For example, the rise of skateboarding and bicycling are evidence that players are choosing lower costing sports.

What is most disturbing is that the investment in sport may not yield the intended results of gaining a better and more-skilled player, because of the time commitment and travel features.  In addition, the stress of playing at higher and higher competitive levels is not for the faint of heart, and often players become dissatisfied and discouraged instead of enjoying the opportunities that travel sport allows.  Further, due to the high dropout rate, may skilled players no longer are moving up the success ladder of these sports, and it becomes harder and harder to sustain a good base of skill to feed these upper level teams. 

Participation in sports is important, but it does not replace the need for families to establish a budget and choose activities that are affordable and sensible.  Unfortunately, many families do not spend as much time on their financial planning as they do with their involvement in sports (1).  As a result, financial pressures may affect an entire family and cause a great deal of unhappiness. Further, the quest for an eventual athletic scholarship for college often negates the possibility of saving money for college or investing in getting good grades so that academic scholarships are available.  If families would invest half of the funds they spend for sports in a college savings account, the pressure to gain athletic scholarships would disappear.  For example, if the average family spending the average of  $100-499 per month noted earlier would invest one half of that per month  ($50-250) in a college savings account from the time the child is 6 until 16, a range of $6000 to $30,000 would be saved by the time the child is ready for college.  This figure does not include accrued interest over the life of the college fund.  Also, if families placed a higher priority on good grades instead of as much time for travel and other time pressures, other scholarship opportunities would emerge.

It simply makes NO sense to invest the amount of money in sport participation when the dropout rate is so high, and the benefits are so low.  Such investment should be completely planned and revamped, so that families don’t suffer the consequences of investing in something that does not ultimately benefit the child.

In future blogs, the issue of the economic divide between those who can and those who cannot afford to participate in sport will be further discussed.  This will include the fact that many potentially skilled athletes simply cannot to participate even on the instructional level of sport because fees and charges are simply too high.

References

(1) TD Ameritrade Investor Survey. (2016). Parent Perspectives on the cost of competitive youth sports. (Retrieved 08/22/20)

(2) The Aspen Institute. (2019). Project Play:  National Youth Sport Survey. (Retrieved 08/22/20)

Sport Policy and Radical Injustice Have a Long History

Black Lives Matter and the protests to gain greater equity and inclusion in society are on everyone’s mind as we share and listen to the divergent opinions on the topic in the United States. Mike Trico, NBC Sports Analyst has called the current professional sport game boycotts around radical injustice “the largest, most widespread day of sports activism that our country has ever seen.” https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.mediaite.com/sports/nbc-sports-mike-tirico-on-nba-mlb-and-wnba-strikes-over-jacob-blake-shooting-largest-most-widespread-day-of-sports-activism-in-us-history/amp/

But, professional sports professionals, collegiate athletes, and recreational sports professionals have always led society in change and social policy. By now, we all remember the difficult but necessary contributions Jackie Robinson (https://baseballhall.org/hall-of-famers/robinson-jackie ) made in breaking the color line in National League in Major League Baseball.  And, alumni from Indiana University know and are proud of George Taliaferro (https://www.si.com/nfl/2020/02/26/black-history-month-george-taliaferro ) who was the first Black player drafted by the National Football League after becoming an All-American rusher at Indiana University leading IU to their only undefeated Big Ten Conference championship. 

Indiana University also figures prominently in leading change in collegiate basketball.  Bill Garrett (https://www.si.com/college/indiana/basketball/indiana-honoring-bill-garrett-building-long-overdue ), now with a Indiana University sports facility named after him, was the first Black athlete who regularly played and started in the Big 10. He played for Hoosier coach Branch McCracken who started Garrett thereby breaking the ‘gentlemen’s agreement’ to not play Black athletes in Big 10 basketball. And there are countless examples of the role individual sport volunteers played in promoting sport participation for Blacks and others at the recreational level that are unknown.  One such example,  sort of lore to some people who remember was Walter Jamieson.  As a Paterson NJ park commissioner, Jamieson (related to big-league star Charlie Jamieson) started Midget League Baseball, where a kid showed up at his Paterson house and came away with a bat, a ball, and a glove with instructions to show up for coaching on Saturday. Legend has it the first Black baseball player in the American League, a Paterson resident named Larry Doby (https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/larry-doby/), got his start in baseball this way.

These changes in sport, local and national, helped to promote other changes in our society and laws with goals to promote greater economic and social equity among Blacks and other minorities. They reflect the larger role sports at the recreation and amateur elite level played in changing societal policy, law, and norms including:

• Parks, as designed early in the U.S., had a goal of building space for all members of the community to interact and mingle with each other (https://www.centralparknyc.org/blog/peoples-park-design)

• Recreation professionals celebrate the role of promoting social equity in access to recreation and sport for diverse populations and the benefits of their participation is a key tenet of the recreation and park profession

• Government policy around the globe promotes sport and access by underrepresented populations as a tool for building common values around a safe and civil society

In the end, there are critical roles for sport policy in every countries policies and society.  Most country’s have a central sport policy.  The decentralized approach to sport policy in the United States however, with over 130 national sport governing bodies, makes unified policy around promoting social equity and diversity through sport difficult. Research has shown that sports programs with large volunteer leadership in sport policy as in the U.S. can make change slow for diverse and underrepresented populations. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1441352318305813

The question becomes, for professionals in sport and recreation, as well as parks and public lands professionals, how to promote social change around equity regardless if it comes slowly in sport for various reasons.  In the end, having the long term view that outcomes in promoting opportunity and equity through recreational sports programs will eventually create real societal diversity, equity, and inclusion change.  The opportunities that professional sport activism is creating the need to be followed with sincere community dialogue that includes facilities, program, and policy development that builds on the current sport activism.  We owe it to all the professional and recreational sport leaders who have advocated for real societal equity, diversity, and inclusion change in the past.

How COVID19 has and will affect sport involvement in the future.

According to the United Nations,

“To safeguard the health of athletes and others involved, most major sporting events at international, regional and national levels have been canceled or postponed – from marathons to football tournaments, athletics championships to basketball games, handball to ice hockey, rugby, cricket, sailing, skiing, weightlifting to wrestling and more. The Olympics and Paralympics, for the first time in the history of the modern games, have been postponed, and will be held in 2021.” (1)

 Before winter and spring of 2020, it would have been easy to write about how current health considerations may affect sports involvement.  Issues like heat and weather-related events, sports injury, blood, and water-borne pathogens, and others would fill pages of how to plan for and mitigate these occurrences.  Such is not the case with the current pandemic that is sweeping across the globe with seemingly wild abandon.  In this case, all sports involvement has to be re-created, re-examined, and the result is that many tried and true procedures for mitigating health challenges are simply thrown out the window.  This pandemic requires that every possible surface be continually cleansed with antibacterial agents, and people need to continually be aware to wash, prevent contact with others within six feet or more of each other, and mask up.

How do sports survive under the demands of mitigating the transmission of the virus?  Even with the current protocols, the virus continues to affect many gatherings; therefore, it is absolutely necessary to take a step back from the sport in total and examine what the best course of action may be.  Our best examples involve how professional sports have reorganized – shorter season, less travel, keeping distance, masking, cleaning all surfaces.  At the time of this writing, many seasons have been canceled, postponed, or minimized.  Likewise, recreational and elite sports for those in early childhood through high school must also be curtailed until there is a feeling of safety and security surrounding the resumption of play.

What long-term effects are at least envisioned as the pandemic continues, even if it lessens with the discovery of vaccines and other ways to mitigate its spread.  At the risk of creating controversy or at least vigorous discussion, I am making predictions even admitting that we really do not know enough to plan the future of the sport in a sound and efficacious manner.  My thoughts are just that – Food for Thought – and hopefully, we will see our way clear within the next year or two to modify sport in a way that is beneficial to everyone.

1.     The economic fallout of many cancellations of high-level sports in every country in the world will have far-reaching effects that will dramatically transform the live experience of viewing to digital viewing opportunities that involve a charge.  People will buy tickets to view live-streamed and other experiences in order to keep up with their favorite leagues and teams. Related to that, online betting will increase, and that market will prosper. 

2.     Players will elect to change their sport pursuit to that of local and community offerings that may lower the appeal of some of the more popular sports.  For example, one may change from a team sport to an individual sport in order to be able to train more flexibly.

3.     People will choose activities that conform to the best health guidelines where it is easy to use masks, access sanitary facilities, and prevent transmission of infectious diseases.  Outdoor activities that avoid crowds will replace mass events in order to protect and be protected.

4.     Health concerns about the long-term effects of COVID infection will be of continued concern.  For example, doctors have alluded to the potential increase in blood clots and myocarditis in those who have survived the disease.  This concern will lead to more players opting out of seasons and being careful about the resumption of the sports they were involved in.

5.     As higher-level competitions decline, lower-level uses of playing areas and facilities will be available, and leisure service agencies will take advantage of the increased availability of arenas, fields, and courts and other facilities that were previously used only by those who reached a higher level of skill.

6.     More attention will be given to making sports opportunities accessible to all regardless of economic level or skill. 

7.     Home-based activities will continue to increase as schools continue online learning, and parents/guardians must fulfill the physical activity and outdoor learning gap by taking children to parks and playing areas. This will necessitate the reuse of facilities and areas otherwise used for highly organized leagues.

8.     Travel sports programs will continue to decrease due to the uncertainty of the use of public transportation, accommodations, and food services. This change will result in greater local league development in nearby facilities.

9.     Due to changes in employment status, many people simply will not be able to afford the recreation services they paid for before the pandemic and will elect to either program their own experiences or take advantage of more reasonably priced programs in their community.

10. Agencies and businesses that provide sport and recreation experiences in communities will need to completely revamp their offerings to include a wider set of social needs such as having community areas and facilities as immunization sites, increasing social services in areas of need, and reinvigorating local and easy to access recreation experiences.

Again the United Nations noted the effects of COVID on the decrease of sports events as follows:

“In addition to economic repercussions, the cancellation of games also impacts many social benefits of global and regional sports events, which can cement social cohesion, contribute to the social and emotional excitement of fans, as well as their identification with athletes leading to greater physical activity of individuals. Sport has long been considered a valuable tool for fostering communication and building bridges between communities and generations. Through sport, various social groups are able to play a more central role in social transformation and development, particularly in divided societies. Within this context, sport is used as a tool for creating learning opportunities and accessing often marginal or at-risk populations.” (1)

References

(1)  United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (2020). The impact of COVID-19 on sport, physical activity and well-being and its effects on social development.  (Retrieved 8/1/20 at un.org).

Covid and the future of Sport and Violence

A youth baseball team poses for. team picture without masks.

With the vagaries and challenges of the COVID19 pandemic and its surges currently affecting every aspect of people’s lives, it is an appropriate time to rethink many aspects of our lives.  In this blog, I am discussing what I believe is a real need to REEXAMINE youth sports, particularly those that involve expensive seasons and travel.  This is not the first time that there have been voiced concerns regarding youth elite sport that involves travel.  In fact, Tom Brady stated his concerns about it with these words: 

“Youth sports, and what I remember from being in youth sports, everything was really localized. There were no travel teams. My parents always exposed us to different things, different sports. It was basketball when it was basketball season. It was baseball when it was baseball season. I didn’t play football until I was a freshman in high school. A lot of soccer. There were some camps, but I just played in the neighborhood in our street with all the kids we grew up with. It’s just different now, and I’m experiencing it with my own kids with all the organized activities that you put them in. It’s just hard, because all the parents are doing it, it seems, and the competition feels like it starts so early for these kids.” (1)

The sport of Hockey presents difficulties when it comes to social distancing.

In order to define exactly what I mean about REEXAMINING youth sports, it is fitting to provide a perspective on what the current picture was of youth sport before the pandemic hit.  For every possible sport in the United States, there appears to have been a basic level of sport offered to help kids learn basic skills and enjoy a modicum of game play as these skills develop.  We see these types of sports originating in schools and park and recreation departments, youth serving not-for-profit organizations such as the YMCA and Boys and Girls Clubs, and private organizations such as a local gymnastic club.  From the beginner level, there is a progression to intermediate and advanced skill development in the formation of teams and leagues and competition.  What seems to have accelerated over the past 20 years are highly organized team-based programs for youth, featuring tryouts and high fees, and parents and guardians have gravitated toward these team-based competitive programs with an eye toward the potential that their child will gain easier access to high school and college sports as well as the possibility of becoming an Olympian, a professional sport hero, or a similar achievement.  At the very least, the prospect of a scholarship to pay for college expenses is intoxicating, and therefore, it is felt that if their child invests in this sport at an early age and gets involved in travel competition, they will be set for life.

Unfortunately, the rise of the attractiveness of travel-oriented sports has caused the basic physical development of youth to decrease for a number of reasons.

1.     Travel-related sport TAKES TIME away from a kid’s ability to just play and examine many physical activities that will develop strength, flexibility, endurance, and aerobic capacity.   By participating in a single sport to meet all of the requirements of travel, a participant may not develop some skills essential to being a healthy human.

2.     Travel programs are COSTLY.  In the newly released 2nd edition of Sport and Violence: A Critical Examination of Sport (2020) (2), Orr and Jamieson note the expense of a simple travel program for ONE sport as over $1000 per season.  Often travel programs extend much beyond one season, so that investment can double or quadruple for just one child.

3.     Often travel teams compete during many games in a season.  In one case, a travel hockey team of 8 and 9 years old had 64 games on their schedule involving a great deal of travel, not to mention an exhaustive number of games for that age group.

4.     Travel often involves driving long distances, but also includes flying.  Due to the strictures imposed by COVID19, such travel may be restricted, or if continued, the disease may spread.  At the very least, travel may need to be restricted to home team competitions and very little travel.

5.     Travel often does not mean that a player gets to play more.  In one experience, a family traveled 6 hours for a weekend tournament, paid for three nights at a hotel, spent three days eating out, and the player played only 30 SECONDS per game!  After that experience, the participant enrolled the following season in a house league that did not travel and played a significant amount of every game, raising his skill level to be eligible to play on a high school sport club.

6.     As a result of the intensity and possibility safety concerns with travel sports, many youth drop out very early and discontinue sport due to discouragement and stress.

Considering safety, economic, and developmental factors, it is my opinion that travel programs should be seriously re-evaluated, and many should cease the extent and geographical range of competitions.  These programs should be replaced with community-based skill development programs that involve local competitive experiences and home-based skill development that support practices and games. 

I know my suggestions may appear draconian in nature; however, the new National Youth Sports Policy, published by United States Health and Human Services supports such re-examination, and as stated within this framework:

“Enjoyment or fun is one of the top motivators for youth sports participation; and lack of enjoyment is one of the most frequent reasons given for dropping out of a sport. Having fun has been associated with intrinsic factors such as being a good sport, trying hard, and learning and improving, as well as external factors such as positive coaching and parenting, game time support, games, practices, team friendships, team rituals, and swag (i.e., team clothing or trophies). For some youth, negative experiences with bullying or hazing can contribute to lack of enjoyment“

References

Brady, T. (2015). The trouble with travel sports. (Retrieved from https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2015/10/05.

Orr, T. J. & Jamieson, L. M. (2020). Sport and violence: A critical examination of    sport. Champaign, IL: Sagamore and Venture.

U. S. department of Health and Human Services. (2019). National Youth Sport Strategy. Washington, D. C.: U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, 109 pp.

Prepared by Dr. Lynn M. Jamieson, Professor Emerita

A Comparison of Social Development Processes Leading to Violent Behavior in Late Adolescence for Childhood Initiators and Adolescent Initiators of Violence

A Comparison of Social Development Processes Leading to Violent

A Comparison of Social Development Processes Leading to Violent Behavior in Late Adolescence for Childhood Initiators and Adolescent Initiators of Violence

TODD I. HERRENKOHL, BU HUANG, RICK KOSTERMAN, J. DAVID HAWKINS, RICHARD F. CATALANO and BRIAN H. SMITH

Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 2001 38: 45

DOI: 10.1177/0022427801038001003

The online version of this article can be found at:

http://jrc.sagepub.com/content/38/1/45

My Experience with Youth Football

Football plays a huge part in my family’s life. At a young age I was groomed with footballs, posters of football teams, and even with my bed coverings and pillows. At the age of 7, I would go to my cousin’s football games and practices to watch them play. I would play touch football with some of the other kids out there, and the coaches noticed how I was performing. That is when the bidding wars for me to play on teams started. My mother would get daily calls from coaches, from traveling teams and community leagues, wanting me to play for their team. Some of the coaches offered a waived sign-up fee, rides to and from practice provided by the coach, a brand new helmet and shoulder pads, and even free team gear. I ended up playing for my godfather’s team the Dads Club Cowboys. I played with this team from the ages of 8-12. This was one of my favorite teams that I have ever played on. We had a family like team chemistry and I knew those guys would protect me from anything, and I would have done the same for them. This was some of my best times while playing sports. Youth football taught me some valuable life lessons like how to work together with people, how to take constructive criticism, and it taught me how to lose without being upset. If I hadn’t played a team sport at a young age, I don’t think I would have learned how to work with people. Some people may look at football as negative and bad because of the health risks, but there is some good that comes from playing football as well.  

Healthy Food Tips for Meals Post Game/Practice

Do you ever wonder what to feed your child after a football game or practice? If your answer is yes, then you are in the right place. According to Kristi Croddy and Livestrong.com, “football is one of the most grueling, calorie-consuming sports, proper nutrition is critical to optimal athletic performance.” High intensity workouts and hot temperatures will cause your child to have a high calorie intake. I will be putting together a list to help you prepare your child for post play meals. These foods will help give them a healthy diet and it will help them build strong bones and stay healthy. If you want to know more I will be adding the link to the website and you can read the full article.

Protein
•    Chicken
•    Steak
•    Salmon
•    Eggs
•    Nuts
•    Dairy Products

Carbohydrates
•    Oatmeal
•    Corn
•    Potatoes
•    Whole-grain breads and pastas

Drinks
•    Gatorade
•    Water
•    Milk
•    Protein Shake

 Link to article: http://www.livestrong.com/article/374326-diet-recovery-before-during-after-a-football-match/

Darrin Crutcher Sportography

Tabb Raiders (2003)-
This was a great opportunity for me to get the basic fundamentals down and perfected. The coach recruited me a year early and would make sure that I was still going play for his team.
I ended up playing for my god fathers team which is why I ended up leaving.
Dads Club Cowboys (04-06)
Playing football for this team is where I would eventually elevate my game and become an all-star and a 2x champion of the league.
I had to move up to a different age group.
Brookside Lions (07-09)
This team was where I decided to have my coach James help me transition my game from recreation to competitive high intensity style football. I became better prepared for the middle school style of football.
I became too old to play youth football, so I turned to middle school football.
Warren Central Tomahawks (03-08).
This was the travel team that I played for after my regular season teams ended. This opportunity gave me a chance to travel and see cities that I wouldn’t have the chance to see. This league was very competitive and fast pace. I got to travel to places like Florida, California, Texas, New York, Iowa, Cleveland, Ohio, Tennessee, and other places.
I dropped this sport once I became too old to participate for this team.

My Sport History by ADDISON SULLIVAN

At this time I did not play any organized sports. Any sort of physical or outdoor play that I had was primarily on playgrounds during pre-school and kindergarten. During kindergarten I remember the game I always played was called “chase”, which was basically an endless game of tag in which the boys chased the girls. I also enjoyed playing kickball but experienced frustration with older kids who would make up rules and refuse to play until they were followed.
Ages 7-10:
During this time I played soccer through the elementary school I attended. I enjoyed it and my dad was often my team’s coach. He always put more of an emphasis on having fun than winning. At the time this was frustrating to some parents, myself and my teammates but was probably best for all of us. It has had some influence on how I participate in sports and how I plan to run my sports programs.
Ages 10-12:
I played soccer during this time through a program run through the local parks department. My dad was my coach and again he put the focus on having fun more than winning. As I got older this became more frustrating to me but is something I appreciate today.
Ages 12-16:
I stopped playing soccer out of frustration with being on a team that was constantly losing. During this time I did not play any sports, team or individual. I spent most of my time focused on school and work. I was homeschooled from the ages 10 to 18 and my lack of involvement in sports definitely cut me off socially.
Ages 16-18:
From 16 to 17 I started going rock climbing at minimum once a week with a friend I made through my parent’s work. I stopped going when I decided to focus on school. After my senior year of high school I started running during the summer, at night, after work. I usually ran between 6 and 10 miles, which prepared me for a half marathon – 13.1 miles, which I ran by myself. My dad influenced me the most with his individual participation in cycling and running.