Choose Your Heroes Wisely

Almost every sports fan looked up to a professional athlete at one point or another. Today’s kids are no exception, especially as professional athletes’ branding grows, major league television deals renew and 24/7 media covers the pros’ every move. With that said, many people have argued that athletes should not be role models for kids - that job is the exclusive role of parents, teachers and coaches. But to a young athlete, someone like Wayne Gretzky or Michael Jordan might as well be Superman.

As a parent and coach - and role model yourself - your goal should not be to discourage your kids’ admiration of superstar athletes, but to encourage the right ones. Not all athletes are to be looked up to, but some are. By way of your sports team website, and through this outline, you can make the distinction clear.

Athletes are celebrities

Professional athletes, especially in basketball and soccer where they are unadorned with helmets and hats, are among the most recognizable people on the planet. They can also be fabulously well-paid by both their clubs and sponsors. But their fame does not preclude them from responsible behavior, nor does it put them on a higher plane. Unfortunately, some pros leverage their celebrity status to get what they want out of people and organizations, party and act immaturely, and neglect the average person.

However, many other athletes use their status to affect change in their communities, raise awareness and be leaders off the field or court. Super Bowl Champion Richard Sherman spoke to a group of high school students about staying in school. He told them that the average NFL career lasts three-and-a-half years, so players must have a plan for the remainder of their lives.

Hard work vs. shortcuts

An admirable trait of most professional athletes is their dedication and work ethic. Without it, most of them would never have gotten to that athletic plateau. NBA star Kobe Bryant is famous for his offseason workouts and for putting up shot after shot long after practice has ended. But others, like Lance Armstrong and Mark McGuire, took performance enhancing drugs in order to gain an advantage. Such behavior is not the stuff of role models, and kids should know that these athletes are humans - not all of them make the right decisions.

With your team sport website, encourage youngsters to have favorite players that they look up to, but help them understand which ones are truly role models.