“A load of crap” were the words Declan Rice chose when addressing speculation surrounding his International future following his Man of the Match performance in Irelands 2-1 win vs USA in June. His second Man of the Match performance in just his third senior International. In the same interview, he stated his excitement to make his competitive debut in the newly formed Nations League, with matches against Wales and Denmark scheduled for September. Fast forward three months, Martin O’Neill revealing Rice had requested to be left out of the two International games as he considered switching allegiances to England. Rice’s previous three caps had all come in International friendlies, as the Nations League games are under FIFA rules they are deemed competitive games meaning if he played he would forfeit his ability to switch allegiances, hence, his absence. There seems to be a consensus amongst Irish supporters that Rice is a traitor and should never be considered for Ireland again, even on the off chance he decides not to declare for England, but is this fair?
As we all can see social media is used by most people all over the world. The uses of social media are constantly changing and expanding as the years go on. We have social media apps such as Facebook and Twitter on our laptops, iPads and mobile phones. This makes it easy for us to get into a routine of checking different sites on a daily basis. Although most of us cannot imagine a life without social media this wasn’t always the case. In recent years it has taken the world by storm where it is used for business and personal use. In relation to sports most professional players have platforms where they can share parts of their life that are personal but also parts that continue to maintain a good reputation. Social media brought about the idea of community development and communication with others. Through the use of the platforms it is shown that social media does in fact give communication between others through mutual likes and dislikes. We already know that social media can have negative effects on sports regarding players during games. Bad comments can be left on different types of social media platforms concerning how good/bad a game was or how one particular player played. This can leave players feeling stressed and under pressure to perform in a certain way. It may also cause anxiety in a player. Along with the negative sides to social media there are also positive ways that social media has impacted sport which will be listed below.
In the world of sport, volunteering plays a vital role from grassroots sport up to the elite stage. Volunteers allow athletes and communities to have the opportunity to participate in sport and without them clubs simply would not be able to function or survive. Volunteers basically give clubs a free workforce, the only expense being supplying training courses for them even though many clubs and organisations do not even cover this cost. However is this a symbiotic relationship? Do volunteers receive the same level of benefit that clubs and organisations do? We shall look at the reasons why people would volunteer and the benefits of volunteering to the volunteer.
In 2008 Sport Ireland reported that volunteering in a sport related activity is the most common type of voluntary activity in Ireland with 15% of adults volunteering each year equating to approximately 400,000 people. These people are volunteering in a number of areas within clubs and organisations such as transport, kit maintenance, coaching, refereeing, club officials etc. but why do these people decide to do this? What is diabetes? Diabetes is a lifelong condition - if one is suffering from Type 1 (T1) - that comes about by the lack of the hormone insulin processed by your pancreas in your body (Grant et al., 2009). Diabetes is the constant worrying about what you need to bring when going anywhere, it’s the fear that you’re going to have a hypo when you’re out and about with family and friends or when taking part in any sports or exercise. T1 is a nightmare. When you are diagnosed first, there is so much to learn and so many big words that you have never heard before entering your head. Everything you do, everything you eat and drink must be monitored.
Diabetes is about injections, prodding your fingers for blood 4, 5 or even 10 times a day to check your glucose levels and then the constant carbs counting for every meal. It’s all about how well you look after it to ensure you are as healthy as you can be, it’s about your family buying into the concept of eating foods with less sugar or using sweetener in tea and coffee instead of sugar. It's these little things that make all the difference. Depression. What is it? Who suffers from it and why? These are the questions that come to mind when I hear the word depression. In recent times, the taboo subject has been getting more recognition, for good and bad reasons alike. For me, it was reading about sporting figures that suffered from this disabling mental health issue that it really came to light and hence, my reasoning for this blog post.
Is our individual relationship with sport the same as taking the plunge of swiping right on tinder to hopefully start a romance made in heaven with another person? Some might say it is. Sport, just like a relationship takes time and commitment. There is no right way to get what you want from your chosen sport. Of course like a relationship there are certain things you know you have to do, like put in the effort even when you are tired and make decisions that will effect more than just yourself.
Just like swiping right for a person you don’t know. Would you swipe right for sport even though you know the highs and lows that it brings? It makes you think, doesn’t it? Have you ever witnessed shouting and roaring from the side line of an underage game, be it soccer or GAA? Foul language, abuse, complaints, and threats by parents and coaches from the side lines have been a major issue throughout the years when it comes to underage sport. Parents and coaches questioning every single decision the referee has made, telling kids they’ll take them off if they don’t do what they are told. Remember that we are talking about U8’s, U10’s, U12’s etc. In the culture of the coach and early elite development there is very little patience. Don’t get me wrong, not everyone is guilty of this carry on. There are some brilliant coaches out there that are involved in the game to improve and develop the skills and abilities of our future stars and they do a great job. And so, are some parents who want to see their kid enjoying themselves and seeing them develop their skills. It is important for coaches and parents to understand that positive early experiences of sports matters. The call for positive approaches to youth sports is on the increase. This has been inspired by an acknowledgement that too many young people get turned off sports due to the behaviour and demand that comes from adults on the side lines that should know better.
We all know the famous saying “sex, drugs and rock and roll” that is given to the crazy, wild rock star lifestyle. Well nowadays it’s not just the likes of the Rolling Stones that has taken up this type of lifestyle and exposed it to our eyes. It feels it has now seeped into the sporting industry and its athletes are getting down and dirty.
Now it’s not being said that in the past there were no stories or scandal in the sporting industry, but it seems that over the years the “naming and shaming” of athletes is being revealed and exposed to the general public at a higher extent, and these scandals receive straight headlines in the newspapers - headlines that are disclosed to our eyes, but more importantly the eyes of children. |
Archives
December 2018
Categories
All
|