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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?
March 22, 2010 at 10:11 pm
In regard to taking business out of professional sports, it is near impossible. The majority of these teams are owned by ownership groups who can spend their hard earned money any way they please. Who are we to tell Jerry Jones not to build a TV screen the size of Texas for his new facility? This is a capiltalist country, and professional sports fall under that influence.
I think professional sports do a good job of inspiring other people due to the strong effort to be more involved with the community. For example Cal Ripken invested a lot of his money into Ripken Baseball by teaching youth how to play baseball the right way and to develop teamwork and leadership skills.
March 23, 2010 at 11:16 am
I personally feel that players play with more pride and joy when they are playing for their countries. One reason I believe this is true is because of how short they are, players know that the Olympics are only a couple weeks and you can be eliminated with one loss. However, take the N.H.L. for example, they have an 82 game season, if they lose a game or even two or three in a row it is not the end of the world. Although every game matters as much as the next one, players I believe feel that they can make up for it later in the year. In regards to the salaries of players; every sport should have a salary cap and each player should not be making as much as what they are today, players salaries have been out of control. By making a smaller salary cap hopefully players would play their hardest all of the time to keep their job before they lose it to someone else.
March 23, 2010 at 11:46 am
As far as professional sports vs. Olympic sports goes, I think it is a little different in the fact that many of the Olympic athletes have grown up wanting to win a gold medal in the Olympics, whether it is for pride for their country or just pride in themselves for winning such a prestigious honor. Although professional athletes grow up wanting to play in the big leagues or what have you, once they reach that level and are finally bringing in that $136,000 a game paycheck, they tend not to play for the team or are just all about themselves. I think this is evident in a sport such as professional basketball. However, switching to summer Olympics for a moment, when you put all of those individuals from the NBA together to win a gold medal, they are no longer getting that $136,000 a game paycheck, but instead are looking to get the gold medal. Because the Olympic gold medal comes around once every four years, the professional players understand that it requires teamwork and that the me-first attitude has to take a backseat. I think that is what makes the Olympics so special. As far as society using American professional sports as a vehicle of inspiration, one has to look not further than the off-season of a professional athlete. These plays may take three weeks to a month off, but once that “vacation” period has ended, they are back to the grindstone and are continuing to train and stay in shape for the next season. These athletes are also training to improve a certain aspect about their game that will better aid them in the upcoming season. Essentially, I feel that if the American public took notice of what athletes do in the offseason, they would understand where that athlete’s excellence comes from and may try to work harder to gain excellence for themselves. If society looked at how hard these athletes work, especially during the off-season, then they would be able to create their own excellences, much like the million-dollar athlete does.
March 25, 2010 at 10:58 pm
Clearly there is a huge difference between the character portrayed in Olympic sports versus professional sports, almost to the point where the viewer forgets that they are watching the same players. That being said, it is obviously due to the predetermined notions put forth by each. When a player goes into the Olympics, they know that they are playing for pride. Literally playing their hearts out for the logo on their chest, not unlike collegiate sports. This is due to the fact that, technically, sports at these levels are considered to be ‘amateur.’ In the simplest form, it can be boiled down to mean that they are playing without monetary compensation. When an athlete reaches the professional level, half of the lure is to sign that huge contract and make the “big bucks.” Until the preconceived notions revolving around each level are changed, the business will never be altered in sport.
March 27, 2010 at 1:42 pm
I think what makes professional sports and Olympic sports each special in their own way is the fact that they are so different. Olympic sports are only refreshing and inspiring in that they are different from the professional sports we are used to watching. If professional sports such as the NBA and NHL ended up being played with the same passion as Olympic sports, than the Olympic versions of those sports would be no different and therefore not a big deal.
As far as professional sports, for me the most fun and interesting part of following a sport are all of the “business” aspects that don’t directly involve the play on the field. I love to follow and analyze how each team in a league allocates its resources, whether it be money in free agency or value in a draft. I view it as a chess match, with each front office moving its assets around like pieces on a board in order to put the team in the best position to win. I may be in the minority, but I can enjoy following a professional league without ever watching a game. To me, what happens on the field is fairly inconsequential compared to the thought, strategy, and logic of how a certain team was constructed or game plan formed.
So in conclusion, I would like to see both Olympic and professional sports remain the way they are so that we can appreciate their differences rather than end up regretting that they became too similar.