I couldn't help posting this article from the New York Times that appeared Sunday as it addresses exactly what coaches at the high school level (and Sports Med / Orthopedic Surgeons) are experiencing all too often.
As I was reading this, the ESPN Radio program I was listening to brought up that Youth Baseball Traveling Teams are adding so many more games per year to high school baseball players that the ligaments in the elbows of these teenagers are being exposed to work loads equal to major league seasons. It was suggested that perhaps this is the reason why there has been 23 "Tommy John" surgeries THIS SEASON in Major League Baseball....a record amount.
Anyway, the article below reminded me of three, specific conversations I had with friends who were paying over $6,000.00 /year for each of their daughter's who were on "Elite" Youth Soccer Teams. My sober assessment was that IF they spent half that on ACADEMIC ENRICHMENT activities, tutoring, etc. their daughters would have a much better chance at getting Scholarship monies.
Lastly, when I was growing up we, as kids, got together and picked teams to play whatever sport was in season at the time. We played HARD and LONG. We argued, competed like hell until dinner time, then became "kids" again.
BRING BACK PLAY for kids, not competitive athletics!
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All Played Out
PORTLAND,
Ore. — PARENTS and doctors may have disparate views on the goals of kids’
sports. I know how disparate because I happen to be both. As a pediatric
orthopedic surgeon and the dad of a kid who loves sports, I see this world from
both sides.
Recently,
I told a teenage boy, whom I’ll call Lucas, and his parents that he had torn
the anterior cruciate ligament (A.C.L.) in his knee. The matching soccer
jerseys worn by the entire family were a hint as to how the conversation would
go.
“You
don’t understand, this is his life!” Mom said.
“We
need this fixed — he’s in the Olympic Development Program! He’s elite,” said
Dad.
Lucas
is 13. The next 40 minutes of what had been a 20-minute appointment were spent
trying to reset expectations. Lucas would need a minimum of six months to heal
the reconstructed graft. On top of that, his bones were still growing, so the
surgical technique would have to be altered to a trickier and less tested
procedure. And the harsh reality: Any knee that has had a major injury will
never be 100 percent “normal.” His parents were furious and left for the
inevitable second opinion.
These
visits are exhausting and more common every year. The question is why.
One
reason is that our very young kids play harder, and for more hours, than ever
before. As a collective, we, the parents, have bought into a new and lucrative
paradigm. Our kids no longer play sports; they are youth “athletes.”
The
landscape of youth sports has changed markedly in the last 20 years. Free play,
where children gather after school, pick a game and play until called in for
dinner, is almost extinct. Highly organized and stratified sports have become
the norm. Time, place and rules are now dictated to our kids rather than
organized by the kids.
Granted,
the stigma of being picked last by neighborhood captains still weighs heavily
on some of us, so maybe a neutral “adult coach” is just what’s needed. But
these paid coaches need to earn their keep and feel pressure to go for the win,
so many kids are excluded from even lining up, or they’re relegated to the
“Wreck League” (a derogatory reference to the kids who just want to play for
noncompetitive recreation).
Eight-
and 9-year-old children are often pressured to choose a single sport and to
play it all year or risk showing a “lack of commitment.” Kids are “invited” to
play in extra-seasonal leagues, but the invitation comes with a caveat. The
implicit message is, show up or don’t expect much playing time during the
regular season. Kids sense the pressure and sometimes it seeps out in
unexpected ways.
