Sportsmanship needed in youth sports

Editor's note: Nancy Justis is a former competitive swimmer and collegiate sports information director. She is a partner with Justis Creative Communications.

Sportsmanship in youth sports isn't dead, but it's dying.

Have you been to a kids' baseball game recently? Or a basketball game? Pick a sport. Parents are yelling at officials, coaches and kids - even their own kids. Coaches are yelling at kids and officials. And most often, the kids just want to have fun.

A recent survey conducted by Liberty Mutual Responsible Sports, powered by Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA), shows that sportsmanship in youth sports is on the decline. That's despite the survey also revealing sportsmanship is considered one of the most important lessons taught in these activities.

The national survey of 2,000 youth sports parents and coaches revealed that 50 percent of the respondents believe sportsmanship has worsened in youth sports since they themselves were children, while only 12 percent felt it had improved.

Conversations with people involved with youth sports on various levels show the survey's findings hold true locally.

'I do think sportsmanship has declined with the increased presence of social media in all of our lives,” said John Allan, an academic and career advisor at Hawkeye College in Waterloo who is a former coach, athletics director and official. 'I officiated for 20 years and don't recall sportsmanship sinking to the level it has today.

'Sportsmanship needs to be taught by coaches, teachers, parents and whomever has a direct impact on student-athletes, especially when they are young and more able to be influenced in a positive manner.”

Stan Hughes of EGOS (Education, Goals, Opportunities, Sports) Unlimited said, 'In order to improve good sportsmanship, players need to understand winning isn't everything. When participating in sports, it is imperative that players grow in the particular sport, improve on their skills/fundamentals, show respect for teammates and opposing team members, and hold themselves accountable.”

If you need further convincing that there is a slide in sportsmanship, a 2010 Reuters News poll conducted in 22 nations ranked parents in the U.S. as the world's 'worst behaved” parents at children's sporting events.