The Importance of Sportsmanship in Young Athletes

Having good sportsmanship is about more than knowing how to win the right way, it’s also about knowing how to represent your team and/or yourself with dignity if you DON’T win.  Learning good sportsmanship from an early age is so important. If it is taught early and properly, it is something that a young athlete will carry with them throughout their sports careers.

There are some great ways to teach young athletes to embrace good sportsmanship.  It doesn’t mean that they have to be happy about not winning.  Everyone who competes in anything wants to excel and they want to win.  But it doesn’t always work out that way, and the sooner a young athlete learns how to handle themselves in the face of disappointment, the sooner they will grow even more in their chosen sport. 

Remember that You Are an Example

Coaches and parents of young athletes can do a lot to show the kids that sportsmanship goes farther than just them.  Everyone has seen irate parents or coaches at a youth match or game and the kids are watching…and learning.  It’s easy for things to get heated when emotions are high and everyone is excited, but when the coaches and parents work together to show the team how they should act, even if they don’t win, that will leave an impression.

Make Good Sportsmanship Part of your Practice

One of the best things a coach can do for his team is to teach them to encourage the other players on the team.   Have them clap for each other during drills, have them yell out words of encouragement when they are moving the ball down the field and most importantly, have them offer encouragement even if a player makes a mistake.  It’s that team spirit and togetherness that will prevail no matter what the outcome of the match is. 

After the match is over, teach the young athletes to line up and shake the hands of the other team.  Be sure that you shake the other coach’s hand as well which will reinforce the lesson you want to teach them.  It’s okay to be disappointed; it’s okay to be upset, it’s NOT okay to act out on the field, stomping off, throwing things or shunning the winning team.  Nothing will mar the reputation of a team faster than showing poor sportsmanship after a loss.

Respect the Officials, Even When It’s Hard

It’s easy to take frustrations out on a referee or official, especially when the call is against your team, but when you can maintain your cool and show the team that yelling at or insulting the referees and officials is not the thing to do, they will follow suit.  Everyone has watched a referee make a bad call.  It’s easy to forget that they’re impartial (or should be) to the match’s outcome and they’re doing the best they can to make the right calls.  Sometimes those calls WILL be wrong, and it’s okay for the team to hear you talk about a bad call, but instead of letting loose with a string of insults about the ref himself, talk about why the call was a bad one and what the referee missed in his decision.

Sportsmanship, good and bad, is everywhere in sports, and young athletes won’t always act the way they should because they ARE young.  It’s up to the parents and coaches to work consistently with them to instill the values that make their team not only great at winning, but a team to respect even during the times they might lose.