Are high school sports a waste of time? What benefits could possibly come from high high school sports? Answering these questions is a difficult task for Americans to answer today. Critics of high school sports believe that there is too great of a risk of injury to play sports. Contenders believe that the risk is greater of getting injured is greater than the positive effects sports have on high schoolers. However, high school sports are worth the time because they improve leadership skills, make athletes humble, and increase athletes’ health. Critics of high school sports believe that sports are a waste of time because of injuries that may or may not occur. They believe that, if not overseen properly, young athletes can cause harm to themselves or others. Critics believe that a torn ACL or a concussion is too great of a consequence for wanting to play a sport in high school that will not lead to professional success. Although I do not agree that children should not play sports because of risk of injury, the risk is there. According to research from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, “on average, 2.44 injuries occurred for every 1,000 athletic practices or competitions at the high school level, the study found. Injuries to high school athletes result in an estimated 500,000 doctor visits and 30,000 hospitalizations each year, according to other medical research” ("High School Sports Injuries: Do the Benefits of High School Sports Programs Outweigh the Physical Risks?" par. 5). Moreover, this study concluded that there is a .244 percent chance of obtaining a serious injury during a high school level game or practice. If professional sports and recreational activities are included, however, the Center for Disease Control has found that there are around 2.5 million concussions per year ("NFL Head Injuries: Is the National Football League (NFL) Doing Enough to Address Head Injuries?" par 5). Even though there is a slight risk of serious injury, the reward outweighs the risk. There are many rewards that athletes benefit from when playing a competitive sport, one of which is building leadership skills. Competing in high school sports builds leadership skills in a way that no other activity can. Jennie Yabroff, author of “In Defence of Cheering,” insists that President Eisenhower exemplified this better than anyone: “Eisenhower, sidelined from football by a knee injury, wielded the megaphone [with the cheerleaders] at West Point” (526). Yabroff’s point is that even though Eisenhower was injured when he played football, he had already gained valuable leadership skills that carried throughout his life and career. This is not to say that if a person plays a sport that he or she will become a famous general and president, but athletics definitely played an enormous role in creating the man that Eisenhower was to come. Another example would be how sports for the past 150 years are how people have prepared themselves for life (Sheed 510). This is important because learning how to treat life is important for a leader. The fact that people have been doing that for hundreds of years also shows how sports are important in life itself. Athletics act like a stepping stone in a person's life; they are brutal just like life and make people grow. Losing a big game will make an athlete humble. game acts like life itself; it has its ups and downs but no matter the outcome the athlete grows from the experience. When an athlete's team is losing or playing horrible, the game does not let up. Wilfrid Sheed, author of “Why Sports Matter,” observes that “sports are in fact unfeeling as life itself. The ref calls penalties against you even when you’re down 50-0, and the scoreboard won’t be adjusted after to make you feel better” (510). This creates a learning experience that is priceless when growing up in this world. When a baseball player strikes out he is not allowed to quit the game and go home. He has to get up and go help his team win the game. This can also be seen with women’s tennis. When the Williams sister came about and started dominating the realm of women’s tennis, the whole sport changed. According to Justine Henin, Belgian tennis great, “Venus and Serena set the bar for everyone, We all had to go back to the gym. Younger players saw that, and now they’re hitting harder and harder” (qtd in 512). This goes to show that in sports, like in life, one must adapt to his or her surrounding to be successful. Finally, and most importantly, athletics help adolescents stay in shape. According to a study by Issues and Controversies,“many health experts maintain that the rising popularity of high school athletics is a good sign. They stress that sports can help to keep students physically fit and healthy, and counteract the current trends towards inactivity and obesity in the U.S.” ("High School Sports Injuries: Do the benefits of high school sports programs outweigh the physical risks?" par. 4). The essence of the article argument is that obesity is rising in the U.S. but sports help bring that down. For example, physical fitness can actually help prevent diseases. According to "Sports and Health," an article written by Stephen Meyer, “coronary heart disease, diabetes, colon cancer, and high blood pressure can all be prevented or improved through regular physical activity” (par. 5). For this reason alone students should be partaking in sports. High School sports should be promoted to all children who are eligible because sports improve leadership skills, teach life lessons, and improve physical health. The pros of being involved in high school sports far outway the cons. Are high school athletics worth the time? Definitely. Are they worth the risk of injury? Definitely.
Works Cited
"High School Sports Injuries: Do the benefits of high school sports programs outweigh the physical risks?" Issues & Controversies, Infobase Learning, 21 Dec. 2007, http://icof.infobaselearning.com.library.ncmissouri.edu:8080/recordurl.aspx?ID=1757. Accessed 23 Feb. 2017 Kimmelman, Michael. “Women Who Hit Very Hard and How They've Change Tennis.” They Say I Say With Readings , W. W Norton and Company, New York , NY, 2012, pp. 512–523. Meyer, Stephen. "Sports and Health." Sports in America: Recreation, Business, Education, and Controversy, 2012 ed., Gale, 2012. Information Plus Reference Series. Opposing Viewpoints in Context, link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/EJ4189600108/OVIC?u=chil38234&xid=c38e2794. Accessed 23 Feb. 2017 "NFL Head Injuries: Is the National Football League (NFL) doing enough to address head injuries?" Issues & Controversies, Infobase Learning, 18 Dec. 2009, http://icof.infobaselearning.com.library.ncmissouri.edu:8080/recordurl.aspx?ID=1770. Accessed 23 Feb. 2017. Sheed, Wilfrid. “Why Sports Matter.” They Say I Say With Readings , W. W Norton and Company, New York , NY, 2012, pp. 489–511. Yabroff, Jennie. “In Defense of Cheering.” They Say I Say With Readings , W. W. Norton and Company, New York, NY, 2012, pp. 524–528.