The last few years have shown us the ugly side of sport. We have seen NBA players climb into the stands to fight with fans, college and high school football players take their rivalries to violence on the field and professional athletes confessing to the use of banned performance enhancing substances. We cannot assume that these events have no impact on our children. Our kids are hearing powerful messages that leave lasting impressions. Messages like; Fighting is part of sports, so its ok for me to do it. Cheating will help me be a better player. And, the pros do it, so I can to.

In one sense, sport has always had its share of bad apples. It just seems that today, professional athletes are more self-absorbed than ever. From the chest thumping NBA players to the dancing and self-promoting displays in the NFL, our professional athletes have forgotten that millions of children look up to them as role models. Its no surprise that we see this boorish behavior being copied in youth sports.

Its important that as parents we do not let these events slip by without addressing them with our young athletes. We need to let them know that these behaviors are not acceptable and that the players who were involved will be punished. We need to remind them that Respect for Opponents, Officials, Teammates and Self is the norm of behavior. This is the ROOTS model promoted by the Positive Coaching Alliance.

I have a creed I try to live up to as a youth coach. That is, be the coach you always wanted to play for. It helps to guide me both on and off the field. It reminds me that I am the role model for the kids I coach. With this in mind, Id like to ask you to help our coaches promote the positive aspects and behaviors in sport by taking a moment to talk to your kids about positive role models. There are plenty of positive examples to point out, from Curt Schilling and Jason Varitek to Tom Brady and Troy Brown to Mia Hamm and Diana Taurasi. Lets make sure our kids understand our position on this subject. After all we are their real role models.

Anonymous Coach