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Faitotoa Faleao

English 1010

July 26, 2017

Issue Exploration

Are single sports programs and high expectations causing children to get injured as they grow

up?

Intro:

Sports have always been a source of entertainment, pickup games, competition, culture,

and so much more. Individuals play sports for multiple reasons and some even play more than

one sport for fun and/or for competition. A new concept that has been brought to many people's

attention is single sports programs. In fact, throughout these past years, single sports programs

have become very popular. Dave Hollander is a professor at an University for hospitality,

tourism, and sports and has said, Youth sports tourism wasnt even a category four years ago,

and now it is the fastest-growing segment in travel.

The idea of single sports programs is to get your child to pick one specific sport at an

early age and get them to stick to it so that as they grow, they can become better in that sport and

eventually get a scholarship and play even further than high school. The Athletic Amateur

Union (AAU) is a multi-sport organization that is based in the United States. The AAU also has

a physical fitness program and they are committed to promote and help develop your childs

abilities and skills. It is said that they have over 700,000 participants and over 100,000

volunteers. "You've got millions of kids involved, parents spending thousands of dollars, and

cities building facilities to host events and chase tourism dollars; It's just huge." (Hollander, 16)
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Im sure you have all heard of Lonzo Ball and his dad. Just a little background, Lonzo

played one year for UCLA and was drafted to the Lakers just this past year. When you hear

about Lonzo, you always hear about his dad LaVar because he is a very outspoken person and

has a lot of pride when it comes to his sons. In an interview, Lonzo was asked how he handles

his dad and he flat out just says "It's always been the same. My dad talks, I play. What he does

doesn't really affect me. I just go out there and do what I love to do." LaVar has high

expectations for Lonzo and theres no problem with that, but the problem is if he can live up to

those expectations; which doesnt seem new to the Ball family.

For people who arent like Lonzo, are some expectations just too high to achieve? Does

this put more pressure on them to be the best? Are single sports programs the way to go with

your child? What is causing your child to get injured? Are these programs too intense? Or is

this what your child needs to succeed at the next level?

Playing multiple sports

Stephen Curry is the most popular NBA player in the league as of right now. He played

many sports such as basketball, football, soccer, golf, track and field, and even baseball at an

early age. An article found in The Wall Street Journal it says, "NBA executive vice president

Kiki Vandeweghe mentions that it's been proven scientifically to be a much better path to

success to try lots of different sports, I think Steph Curry is a great example of that." (Cohen,

27) Steph trifled in a lot of sports and he eventually decided to stick to basketball because that is

what he loved to play most and he thought that was the sport he was best at.

In that same article it says, They have found that specializing in one sport at a young age

is unnecessary and may even be unhelpful. Early focus on one sport--and only one sport--can

increase the risk of overuse injuries and raise the potential for burnout. It also robs
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impressionable athletes of a diversity of experiences that can benefit them as they develop both

as athletes and adults. (Cohen, 22) Curry as well as many others didnt limit themselves to just

one sport. Playing numerous sports and interacting with plenty of people, old and young, has

helped shaped countless people as an athlete and as a person.

Sport Specialization

Sport specialization is when someone specializes in one sport at an early age. In the

Science Daily article it says However, an emphasis on competition, collegiate scholarships and

elite-level success has led to increased pressure to begin high-intensity training at young ages,

often in only one sport. Consequently, overuse injuries and burnout are affecting many young

athletes. (AMSSM, 20) Kids are training at younger and younger ages at such an intense level

often in a single sport and that is what is mainly causing them to be more prone to injury due to

those training sessions. Not only are they pressured to begin training at a young age, but they are

also being pressured to compete and get a collegiate scholarship. That same article goes on to

say, In addition, this new report highlights several specific higher-risk overuse injuries that may

result in prolonged recovery and have the potential to endanger future participation.(AMSSM,

36) Although you put your kids in elite training programs to get better at a sport, this could

eventually lead to them getting injured and keep them from participating in sports further along

the road.

The results of a recent study conducted by the NCAA show that not only do many

student-athletes begin specializing in sports at an early age, but also that many are expected from

a young age to play sports in college and maybe even further. The findings show that many

parents and student-athletes believe in different things which results in what is possible and what

reality shows the chances are of shaping and forcing a career as a professional athlete. In the
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article by the NCAA researchers it says, Even expectations of playing in college are much

higher than what is realistic. Parents expect their child to play in college when in reality those

chances are slightly low.

Expectations

In the article of World News titled Think Twice about Travel Teams it discusses the

consequences of putting children in athletic travel teams. Travel teams have become very

popular within youth athletics. Joining a travel team may make your child play better, but

researchers have found nothing connecting travel teams to receiving college scholarships. In the

article it says, The downside is worth considering. Your child may not succeed at tryouts. Can

she handle being cut? And, if she does make the team, she may ride the bench. In the competitive

leagues, only the best athletes play the most. (Cary, 10) When your child plays in one sport and

is focusing on that sport, they have expectations for themselves just as their parents do. They

expect that if they are going to focus on this one sport that they need to make that high school

team or at least get a scholarship to a college. What if that doesnt happen? Can they handle not

being good enough for that team. Orthopedists report an alarming increase in youth sports

injuries, especially from repetitive actions like throwing a baseball. Burnout is a real concern to

coaches-some kids who have played intensively since age 10 are just flat-out tired of the sport.

(Cary, 12)

There is a story found in the Los Angeles Times that connects to what orthopedists have

reported. In this article it describes childhoods that are filled with injury and insecurity due to

being pushed too far with their parents. Many families suddenly find themselves uncertain over

their childs ability to score a goal or hit a home run at a young age. Aidan eventually played
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three sports, all with his father on the sidelines or in the stands. (Plaschke, 56) Parents often

expect their kids to do what they, themselves couldnt when they were that same age.

By the time Aidan had enrolled at Windward School in seventh grade, the injuries and

overexertion finally caught up with him. His body began to hurt and never stopped hurting. The

pain struck his knees, then smothered his back, then finished his dreams. (Plaschke, 73) Aidan

was pushed to the point that he got hurt and even though he was hurt, his dad still pushed him to

play and work harder. Even though Aidan knew he was hurt, he still pushed himself so that he

could make his dad proud. As you can imagine, this dad regrets pushing his son to the point of

him getting hurt and not being able to play again. Expectations can be so out of reach but

everyone wants to make their parents proud so play harder, workout harder without knowing the

consequences.

Theres a Limit

Im an athlete myself and all of these stuck out to me but I think theres a limit to all of

them. I think repetition is great, I mean thats all I heard throughout high school, and thats what

helped me become good at some of skills in volleyball that I never would have learned if I didnt

just keep playing or practicing that one specific skill. But then again, I think its also good to just

take a break from your sport and explore the other sports. For example if you play basketball,

take a break and go play some baseball, tennis or even go do yoga or play some racquetball. Just

so that you can experience different sports and be coordinated in more than one sport. As for the

expectations, I think those are good if you know your child can achieve it. Also having goals as

well and not just expectations so that they can learn and grow from that sport will help boost

their self esteem and get better in that sport. Just do the best that you can and do what you think

is best for you and that will make you a better athlete as well as a person.
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Works Cited

American Medical Society for Sports Medicine. "Overuse injuries, burnout in youth sports can

have long-term effects." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 3 January 2014.

www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140103205139.htm

Cary, Peter. "Think Twice about Travel Teams." U.S. News & World Report, vol. 141, no. 24, 25

Dec. 2006, p. 72. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=23463530&site=ehost-live.

Cohen, Ben. "The Stephen Curry Model for Youth Sports." Wall Street Journal, 18 May, 2016,

pp. D.6, SIRS Issues Researcher, https://sks.sirs.com.

Plaschke, Bill. "The Pride and the Pain." Los Angeles Times, 09 Mar, 2017, pp. D.1, SIRS Issues

Researcher, https://sks-sirs-com.libprox1.slcc.edu.

Price, Karen. "NCAA Study Reveals When Athletes Begin Sport Specialization." TheSeason.

GameChanger, 21 Mar. 2016. Web. 19 July 2017.