Professional Athletes As Role Models

Sports and Culture

I've known for quite a while that there's no corollary between athletic ability, character and maturity. In fact, when watching some of the antics of professional athletes it often seems as if we're watching overgrown children instead of mature adults. There are many reasons for this but much of it has to with the culture from where the athletes come from. The truth is that many of the players that make up the rosters of NFL and NBA teams comes from inner city thug like environments where many would probably be in jail or dead if not for their exceptional athletic ability. In many ways, sports is just a reflection of a society that becomes more coarser all the time. Expecting professional athletes that in many cases come from harsh unforgiving segments of society to act like gentlemen is like "trying to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear". I remember growing up in a different era and following athletes like 'Brooks Robinson', a classy guy if there ever was one. But this is a different world we live in today and that includes the world of professional sports and the athletes that play the game.

Wide World of Sports

Before there was cable and ESPN, there was a program that used to come on every Saturday called ABC's Wide World of Sports that would feature sports and sport like activities from around the world. Some of the things I first remember seeing on Wide World of Sports programs were things like barrel jumping, demolition derby, rugby and many other unique activities that I couldn't begin to put a name on. Wide World of Sports was a precursor to all the Sports channels that you have on today, and featured more than just unique sports but revealed many things about the different cultures as well. One thing that anyone who has ever watched the show can recall is the opening part of the show where they would feature clips from past events and would always have the commentary, "the thrill of victory, and agony of defeat". The pictures they used to show both sides of competitive sports were dramatic enough that I can still recall every detail of the skier wiping out on the slopes. I just hope the skier in the clip got a dollar for every time that scene was shown. It would help ease the pain of knowing that it's what the world or least his skiing buddies will always remember him for.

Spring and Baseball

It's that time of the year again in this part of the world where the cycle of life begins anew as plants start to grow, birds build nests, and baseball returns. Opening Day is one of those rituals that a large part of the American population participates in, in various ways. For some, it means taking the day off from work(for those lucky enough to still be employed), and for others it's listening to the game on the radio, or watching it on T.V. Baseball is a reflection of life in that "hope springs eternal" and in theory every team has the same chance on Opening Day as the next team as they are all starting off on an equal footing, or so it seems. But just as there are no two children in life that have the same opportunities when they are thrust into the world, it's the same in the world of professional baseball as the big money teams like the Yankee's and the Red Sox have usually acquired the best free agents available in the offseason for another run at the World Series. Although baseball isn't followed with the same fervor as in previous generations, it still has its place, and Opening Day is one of those special moments that like the return of Robins in the Spring we can count upon, and look forward to. Game on!