One Sports Live

Should you spur your child to play dangerous sports with the goal of becoming a professional athlete and making a boatload of money? De la chanson or it depends on the child, parent, talent, motive, and opportunity. The answer is a resounding "no" if you ask this parent of four. I will explain more of my rationale later. For a starter, caveat emptor: sports, like other businesses, have exploitative under-bellies few see or want to see. Being proactive is prudent because advice One Sports Live  given after injury is tantamount to medicine after death.

There are functional skills one can acquire from playing various sports: teamwork, perseverance, determination, winning, and resilient habits. Also, playing sports can be beneficial to one's overall health.

Obesity is a worldwide health problem with known consequences. Some of these consequences are high blood pressure, Type II diabetes, heart disease, sleep apnea, joint disease, and various cancers, to name a few. But don't tell that to many Nigerians (in particular and Africans in general) who believe that being fat is a glorious thing, a status symbol, and evidence of good living and wealth. Engaging in physical activities throughout one's life are worthy habits that promote both the quantity and the quality of life, per health experts.

However, there is a huge divide between playing sports recreationally and playing them professionally. No sport is risk-free but some are more dangerous than others. The admission costs to the professional athletes' club can be too high; frankly, may not be worth it.

In my 20's I liked to watch boxing. Sugar Ray and Thomas's "Hitman" Hearns II fight comes to mind. Marvin Hagler, Larry Holmes, Michael Spinks, Mike Tyson, and George Foreman's second coming were my favorites. I watched those fights every chance I got. At one Pay-View event in 1987 in Oakland, California, I happen to be seated close to a former boxer. As we walked out of the venue after the thrilling fight, he made statements that stuck in my mind when a spectator begrudged the millions the fighters earned. He said, "these fighters will pay dearly for the rest of their lives for the hits they have taken today." He continued by saying, "all the millions they made today will not be enough to heal the lifetime of pain and suffering."

Looking back, his utterances were rather prophetic because little was known then about the effects of concussions, hits to the head, performance-enhancement drugs, Parkinson's disease, memory loss, and slurred speech issues. Some of the sports we send our children to play today are equally dangerous, don't let the hype, money, fame, and medical advancement fool us. Remember that beef came from a cow or as the Igbos say, "Suya ahu si O'ahu nama"!

Seeing the huge money and fame in these sports, it was just a matter of time before Nigerian parents and/or our children themselves started pursuing the trappings of these sports. Some may want to reap the obvious benefits without seeing the latent pitfalls. These parents and children should adhere to this Einstein quote: "learn the rules of the game [first]. And then you must play it better [on and off the court] than anyone else".