In the world of sports, there is always something happening. With so many sports to choose from, fans certainly have a variety of events to watch each week.  For example, just look at the overlap in terms of some of America’s major sports leagues: Major League Baseball (today is Opening Day www.mlb.mlb.com/mlb/schedule), National Hockey League (the 2010 regular season ends on April 11th www.nhl.com/schedules/20092010) and the Professional Golf Association’s Masters Tournament begins April 8th (www.pgatour.com/r/schedule). Even in terms of the sports not currently in-season, the media keeps fans up-to-date on breaking news and events such as the National Football League’s 2010 Draft (which takes place in one month www.NFL.com/Draft). Of course one cannot overlook other sports, such as basketball, especially since games are taking place at both the professional and collegiate level (March Madness is certainly in full swing www.ncaa.com/champ/m-baskbl-d1-champ.html). 

With so many sports opportunities available it is no wonder that the sport industry must constantly strive to attract AND maintain fans, particularly in difficult economic times. Given all of this, I surprised myself when I realized how much I actually missed watching the 2010 Winter Olympics. I can’t believe the Olympic Games ended almost a month ago. No matter how you look at it, there is something different about watching the United States Hockey team as opposed to watching the same players on their regular NHL teams. 

For me, a large part of it boils down to the pride and importance athletes take in playing their sport for their country. In today’s world, with free-agents and the reality of “sports as a business” there can be something lacking in terms of player and fan loyalty. However, the pride of playing for a medal for a country transcends all of the other stuff. In a sense, the Olympics seem to have a sense of innocence or purity that doesn’t exist in professional sports or even college sports when athletes have an eye for turning professional down the road.

I know I can be a bit idealistic but I can’t help wondering if there is a way to bring some of the pride, dedication, sacrifice, work-ethic and honor that accompanies successful, individual, Olympic athletes to our young athletes in recreational sports to collegiate sports and eventually to professional sports as well. In fact, we could all use a little of those qualities in our everyday life, regardless of the profession in which we work.

 What do you think? How can society use professional sports in America as a vehicle to inspire others towards attaining excellence in ways OTHER than looking at the paychecks of professional athletes? How can we take some of the business out of sports and put the emphasis on the game? How about the character of the player? Or, maybe I’m just wrong and nothing should change. What do you think about professional sports versus Olympic sports?

There is a first time for everything! This past week I experienced a number of firsts. I traveled to Florida to visit some students doing their work experience. While at Roger Dean Stadium, I had the pleasure of visiting a student and alumnus of the program. I also met with two individuals who I knew from their time with the Lancaster Barnstormers. The highlight of this day came when I was given the opportunity to throw out the first pitch of the spring training game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Detroit Tigers. It was really cool, and yes, I threw a strike! I then traveled north to Daytona Beach to visit another student. I am not a NASCAR fan by any stretch of the imagination, but spending the day at Daytona International Speedway was really cool! This was the first time I had ever been to a NASCAR track. I was given a behind the scenes tour, took a picture on Victory Lane and changed a tire in the Daytona 500 Experience (my partner and I had the fastest time of the day). Friday took me to Rochester, New York, where the York College Women’s Basketball team competed in the NCAA Division III Sweet 16 for the first time. Even though the girls did not win, it was a great experience and they had a wonderful season. I wrapped up the week by watching a youth hockey game (another first for me). It was great to see the kids enjoy the game and have fun just being on the ice. If you have never seen young kids play hockey, I would suggest you make time for it. They can skate very well! So, over the course of the week I saw almost the entire spectrum of sports, from professional baseball to youth hockey, and it reminded me of how much I love what I do!

Winter break has come to an end. As most of you know, I should be in Kuala Lumpur right now. But, I am actually in McKay 209! It is a fact of life that things happen that are out of our control, and we have to adjust our plans; such is the case for me this week.

Instead of traveling to Malaysia, I was able to see our women’s basketball team advance to the NCAA Division III Sweet 16 for the first time. This week, I will have the opportunity to travel to Jupiter, Florida, to visit a student doing her work experience, see an alumnus, go to Daytona International Speedway and Redskins Park, as well as see my brother.

When things happen that are out of our control, how we react says a lot about who we are as people. This concept is of particular interest for those taking Public/Media Relations in Sport. When I return, crisis situations will start.

You know what my plans are for the coming week. I know what some of you did on break, such as Habitat for Humanity, work, vacation to Cancun, etc… I am interested to hear from the rest of you what you did on break and how that prepared you for the next month of class.

View original post here.