'Youth sports isn't just about sports. It's about keeping fun in the game and teaching your athletes lessons they can take them with them in life' - Count John Burnes
Sports is an activity carried out for amusement, recreational purpose, or for any competition type. It can be an amalgamation of the aforementioned as well. Sports in itself is an emotion. An emotion driving each one of us to 'play and enjoy it'. Sports have multifarious advantages. Sports help society to evolve constructively. It has physical, cultural, and religious significance associated with it. Apart from all this, the importance of sports in a youth's life is of paramount importance. Here's an attempt to highlight some of the important advantages that sports bring for youth, for his career, and most importantly, the world community. Youths are regarded to be the future of the country. Hence, kindling the very emotion of 'sports' in youths is the need of the hour. The following content shall assist the readers to realise the significance of sports for youth.
Sports accounts for physical and mental benefits in tandem for youth. It helps in the maintenance of cardiovascular fitness. It helps in reducing cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Sports involve aerobic exercises and hence a routine involvement in a sports activity causes the heart to pump blood into circulation more efficiently. It improves heart endurance as the heart beats faster as long as the individual is involved in any physical activity demanding strenuous efforts. The lung function is also developed. Hence, sports assists in combating heart diseases and other chronic ailments especially. It also helps in improving muscle and bones and thereby helps in maintaining the balance of the body. A sportsperson is presumed to be physically fit. Chances of suffering from obesity are reduced. Improved eyesight is also seen as an advantage of outdoor sports. It helps in reducing joint pain. The burning of calories helps in the reduction of extra fat in individuals. Sports guide a healthy physical life.
Sports has also been attributed to 'mental fitness'. Sports help in curtailing stress and depression. It leads to mood improvement. The quality of sleep is also improved. Sports development has also been linked to the development of self-confidence and self-esteem in the sportsperson. The sense of accomplishment of a task or activity gives that feeling. A sense of pride is developed in the sportsperson and he tries to keep up his good work. Competitions organised at different levels help the individuals to develop both as a person and as a team. Participating within a team helps improve the leadership qualities of a sportsperson. Sports has it's own ups and downs. It helps the individual to adapt to the frustrations and disappointments associated with any of the sport types. It caters to the development of the sportsperson on emotional keynotes. The team spirit in sports draws brotherhood and unity amongst various team members. Sports give birth to a healthy competition structure as well. Sports have an emotional appeal for all as the most vital interest of the state that is, the 'prestige' of the state is associated with it. Skill improvement in sports is also associated as interpersonal skills between sportspersons are also complemented with the entire activity.
The pandemic though masked the people inside their homes but it generated E-Sports or the importance of Indoor Sports constructively to keep the development of youth ongoing. Sports has never missed an opportunity to brighten the career prospects for youth.
Engrossed in sports activities on a routine basis helps in attracting the focus of an individual towards sport more often. A focussed mind bears excellent academic results as well. He becomes self-disciplined rather. A healthy sport is regarded to be one which is guided by the ethical standards and rules of the sports. Hence, the moral behaviour and qualities of a sportsperson are improved. It's not always winning that is appreciated in the sports but it is the participation of the individual which is appraised more. Working within a team helps in improving social skills as social interaction is an intrinsic feature of any sports activity. The resilience in individuals and the quality of perseverance get embedded in the sportsperson to the core.
The disabled youth play Parasports. Paralympic sports cater to the physical and intellectual disabilities of individuals. For them, there are Deaf Basketball, Goalball, Wheelchair Tennis and Sitting Volleyball, etc. Sports don't account for any differences to the differently abled people. Many differently-abled youths are today organising employment opportunities for their section. Sports are helping them to get out of the negative image they had developed for themselves. Sports is into fostering awareness among youths regarding it. Various training and competitions are organised for the differently-abled too to elevate the enthusiasm inherent in them.
Counting all of the advantages that sports bring for youth is again a Herculian task. Still, the above mentioned assume prime focus. Remember, it is not alone about winning a triumph rather it's a matter of effort. A single stride that should be taken by all of us. Jessica Ennis-Hill also connoted the same idea when she said, 'The only one who can tell you, 'you can't win is you and you don't have to listen to that.' The readers are expected to spread the word regarding the same, helping the international community foresee the vitality of both the prime ideas, that is, 'Sports for Youth' and 'Youth for Sports'.