High School Sport

I believe that there are multiple objectives of high school sport. I believe sports in high school serve social purposes as well as athletic. There are many different aspects sports in high school serve, both negative and positive. Sports in high school may evoke a sense of school pride, bringing together students of different races, background, social groups, religions etc. It can also provide necessary physical activity children at this age need to maintain a healthy life style. While there are many positive characteristics to high school sport, there are also a couple negative factors I would like to point out.

At my high school, soccer was the biggest sport in town. Football, basketball, and baseball were also common sports in Oklahoma high schools, but soccer ran the town. We had been champions for two years in a row, and by my senior year we were due for a “three-peat”, or winning three championships in a row. This created immense amount of pressure both internal and socially for the team and I. High school sport can create some of the greatest awards and hardest lessons. The social conditions that high school sports are able to incorporate is essential, and values will be created and held for a lifetime. I believe that if coached properly and treated equally, high school sport is a great asset for schools.

Once the Cheering Stops: The Life of a Retired Pro Athlete

I believe that once you become an athlete, if you truly love the sport it becomes part of you. The professional athlete experiences something truly remarkable in regards to sport. The professional athlete is may not only play sport for the fun of the game, but it is their job as well. According to the 30 for 30 video, after two years of being retired in the NFL, 78% of previous players were filing bankrupt or under definite financial stress. Athletes must become better educated or I believe this rate will continue at its current pace.

Once an athlete has retired, it can affect many aspects of their life. The game that some of them have played for nearly all their life is no longer present, and neither are the many things associated. Some professional athletes enjoy the pure stardom that the life brings. Others simply just have the love of the game in their heart.

According to your slideshow in class, Shannon Miller said, “I didn’t know how to be a regular person… I initially watched a lot of TV, gaining four dress sizes on my five-foot frame. It was very disheartening but it helped me realize I had to find my next passion in life”. It is clear that sport is not simply a game for some people on this earth, but rather a passion, a love, for the sport itself, and when that love is removed it can be extremely painful.

London Calling: The Globalization of the NFL

I believe that the globalization of the NFL would be a positive move for the sport of football in general. Spreading the sport of American football (unlike its same named counterpart in other various parts of the would, ‘futball’) would increase revenue for the NFL immensely. Globalization of the NFL would increase revenue because it would increase accessibility for fans outside of the United States who have much more access to watch the sport. Fans want to see what they pay for. If fans are wishing to buy jersey’s, they are much more likely to buy the jersey of the player whom they watched make the game winning touchdown. While American football is not non-existent in Europe and other countries, it fails in comparison to quality of play as well as the quality of said sport players. I believe that the NFL should keep its base in America, and perhaps have a one regular-season game in a different country each year. It would be simply too tiring and time consuming, not to mention unfair to the players and their families to keep them moving from country to country each game.

While London is known quite well for being able to produce

quality fans in other sports such as soccer and tennis, I believe

it would only be appropriate to have NFL teams play there

once a year, maybe moving locations each year allowing a wide

array of audience for the American based sport. In conclusion, I

believe that the NFL have good intention in having games held

outside of the U.SA, but they must be very limited for the sake of the players, fans, and families alike.