Q: Our family loves playing sports so being limited the past couple of years has been tough. Our 8-year-old twins are finally starting league soccer this summer. My husband and I were both college athletes and we’re ultra-competitive, so we want to ensure that we maintain a healthy perspective. Do you have any advice?
Jim: I understand – I’m a competitive guy myself whose athletic career was cut short by injury before college. So, I had to temper my approach with my own sons.
We’ve all heard stories (or seen examples) of bad behavior at children’s sporting events – poor sportsmanship, yelling and even fistfights. It’s exponentially worse when parents are the ones behaving poorly! Fortunately, most parents wouldn’t dream of acting out violently. But those extreme cases aren’t the only ones that take the fun out of youth sports. Yelling at coaches, officials and players – or (especially) publicly criticizing your child’s performance – can be humiliating for all concerned.
