A Rhetorical Analysis Of Competitive Sports

In Jessica Statsky’s article, “Children Need to Play, Not Compete’’ points out how competitive sports are not fit for children from ages 8-12,due to the fact that it could trigger both their physical and mental health. First,Statsky elaborates on the idea of children faking an injury due to the fear of getting hurt.She cites a mother of an eight-year-old Peewee Football player,who says “The kids get so scared. They get hit once and they don’t want anything to do with football anymore. They’ll sit on the bench and pretend their leg hurts…” (qtd in Tosches). Some children are driven to even more desperate measures. For example, in one Peewee Football game, a reporter watched the following scene as a player took himself out of the game:“Coach,

my tummy hurts. I can’t play,” he said. The coach told the player to get back onto the field. “There’s nothing wrong with your stomach,” he said.

When the coach turned his head, the seven-year-old stuck a finger down his throat and made himself vomit. When the coach fumed back, the boy pointed to the ground and told him, “Yes, there it is, Coach. See?” (Tosches A33).It emphasizes the fact that if a child gets hurt once, they will fear the possibility of getting hurt again ,so they try to find excuses to prevent themselves from playing the game.Second,Statsky states how competitive adults have drained the fun out of children's sports and made the game unappealing for children.She cites Martin Rablovsky, a former sports editor for the New York Times says that in all his years of watching young children play organized sports, he has noticed very few of them smiling. “I’ve seen children enjoying a spontaneous pre-practice scrimmage become somber and serious when the coach’s whistle blows,” Rablovsky says. “The spirit of play suddenly disappears, and sport becomes job-like” (qtd in Coakley 94). It shows the fact that competitive adults are oblivious to their actions and don't notice that what they are doing can really affect a child mentally.Third, Statsky is concerned that competitive sports will lower a child's self-esteem and make them lack confidence.’’Like adults, children fear failure, and so even those with good physical skills may stay away because they lack

self-confidence’’.(Statsky 9).’’The problem is that many parent-sponsored, out-of-school programs give more importance to having a winning team than to developing children’s physical skills and self-esteem.’’(Statsky 9).This is an important point because it identifies how competitive sports don't include all children, because they are so highly selective and that discourages some children from trying out again. Because of these reasons, it is obvious that society should stop pushing children into competitive sports at a young age, and to do things that are in the best interest for them.