Importance of sports

The text of a speech i gave for annual sports day at a school. The initial paras have been removed.............

..........We will move on to the various sports in a short while (as soon as I shut up, I’m told). A few students will win prizes and there will be many who wont. Most of what I say is for the guys who wont win any prizes today. I urge everyone to give their best and not to lose heart. It is the spirit of participation that matters and please don’t take it as another cliché. Winning matters but whole hearted participation matters more. Some of you must have read Robert Browning who said ‘A man’s reach should exceed his grasp, or what’s a heaven for’. I’m sure your English teacher will check me for using the quote in the wrong context but............ the ability to give your best, to strive beyond the certainty of winning is an admirable trait. It will stand you in good stead, in sports field, in class, in life.

Sports is about not giving up, not till the last whistle. There must be a lot of football fans amongst you. Have you heard the quote with which the Georgia Tech University team fires themselves up

“We’re going to fight until we can’t fight no more. Going to lie down and bleed awhile. Going to get up; fight some more.” I am still talking about football. But just imagine this spirit in the game of life.

Sports is also not just about beating an opponent; it is about surpassing your own capacities, to gauge your limitations and work towards overcoming them. to develop the spirit of continuous self-improvement. “The spirit, the will to win, and the will to excel are the things that endure. These qualities are so much more important than the events themselves or the results.”

Another very important benefit that you get from sports is that you cultivate team spirit. It teaches you to work as a team with your friends to accomplish a common goal. It is not a mean achievement to be part of a team and to be able to look your teammate in the eye and know that you did not let him down, that you did everything that you could. That even after the body almost gave up; the mind made it stretch its limits. That you are reliable. That you will watch my back.

A word to the parents. In one of my previous assignments as the Chief Instructor of Naval Academy, in 2003, I found that almost 15 to 20% of the cadets developed stress fractures and the reason surprisingly was that those cadets had never played any game. Though they could clear the initial physical test, sustained physical activity took its toll. Most parents give precedence to academics and in the pursuit of academic excellence sports is given short shrift.

Time devoted to playing is not time taken away from studying. The Romans had a proverb, I cant get my tongue around it but it means 'a healthy mind in a healthy body'. Research has shown that the Romans were really on to something. While we have known for a long time that exercise can protect general health and wellbeing, it now seems that exercise also helps to preserve brain health. Fitness levels have been associated with maintenance of brain function and reduced risk of development of Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

So, how can exercise improve brain health? The answer may lie with a group of proteins called growth factors. This family of proteins includes insulin-like growth factor (IGF) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). Studies have demonstrated that exercise can increase BDNF concentration in the hippocampus, a brain region vital to learning and memory. In a project analysing the effects of exercise on brain function and blood levels of growth factors in a group of young male students, it was found that physical training resulted in small but measurable improvements in learning and memory.

And it is not only health, playing any sport well involves superior communication skills, the capacity to assess situations, and the ability to take immediate and critical decisions in split seconds, where margin for error is very fine. “One half a step too late or too early, you don’t quite make it, one half second too slow or too fast you don’t quite catch it” I never thought I would be quoting from movies to students but that’s from one of those football movies, Al Pacino at his best.

Taking part in sports also boosts children's morale. Children realise that being selected to represent their school in a tournament is an honour and a responsibility. Their ability to fulfil this responsibility instils confidence in them. Kids who are into sports are known to display confidence in other areas of their life also. Physical activity and fitness is a very important aspect of life. In most cases, people are happier, have better self – esteem, and are more successful when they are healthy.

I have already had the privilege of declaring the sports meet open. Now lets go see some action.

Thank You. Jai Hind