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With Wimbledon, the Tour de France and the Soccer World Cup all reaching screaming crescendo’s these days, it occurred to me that it is time to give some thought to the crucial role that sport plays in our lives.
Our planet is beset with endless seemingly insurmountable problems which most of us, including people in power who should know better, choose to ignore. In this dismal scenario with rising tensions between the east and the west, Arabs and Israelis, Ukrainians and Russians, the developed and underdeveloped world, rich and poor, Muslim and Christian, men and women, to name but a few examples, the ultimate escape appears to be sport.
Is this cause for concern? I think not. Let me explain.
In a world beset with conflicts, sport brings us together. The many things that divide us such as nationality, religion, culture, language, race, gender and sexual orientation are all forgotten when we collectively watch a game of soccer, rugby or cricket.
We all know and understand the rules of the game and are not at all fazed by the fact that an important soccer game between a European and an African country will be adjudicated by a referee from the Middle East together with linesmen from the Far East in a South American country.
Together, we enjoy the talent, guts, perseverance and skill on display. Due to the different languages that we speak, we may find it difficult to communicate with one another but we are able to appreciate and understand the event whether it is a game of soccer, a cycle race or the Monaco Grand Prix. If only these hours of collective understanding could be extended indefinitely. Sadly, the so-called “real world” will have none of it.
To excel in sport requires commitment, continuous training, a healthy life style and both physical and mental strength. The rewards are great but only come the way of the most dedicated and determined competitors. The same principles should apply in our daily lives but all too often we find that people insist on hefty pay increases, regular promotions and a host of benefits without the commitment to loyalty and hard work.
Sport sets a laudable example which should be embraced by us all in our various activities whether as lawyers, brick layers, doctors or gardeners. We hide behind the excuse that exceptional talent guarantees sportsmen and -women their successes while conveniently forgetting the time and effort these men and women put into the honing of those skills and talents.
Sport teaches us the virtue of patience and acceptance.
We live in a world where instant gratification has become the norm. It is therefore good to see the time and effort it takes to score a goal in a closely contested soccer match or how one impatient shot can cause a player to lose either an important tennis match or a major golf tournament. We also tend to forget that for every winner who walks away with the prize money and who is lauded in the headlines of many newspapers, there are many who did not quite make it.
Nevertheless they continue to train and work even harder in the never-ending endeavour to achieve success in the next match, game or tournament without any certainty as to whether he or she will ever succeed. These amazing people realise and understand that life is a quest and that one must be prepared to settle for the nobility of the quest should it transpire that the accolades of success elude them in the end.
The wonder of partaking in amateur sport on the other hand, is simply that it removes the barriers between people. Take marathon running, cycling or canoeing for instance. The competitors are not at all interested to know whether you are an erudite academic, wealthy entrepreneur, respected lawyer, stone mason, postal clerk or electrician.
The issue is simply whether you have the mental strength and physical stamina to complete the marathon whether on your two feet, on your bicycle or in your canoe. Winning is not really the issue. As an amateur, you compete with yourself with the certain knowledge that you are bound to know yourself a bit better, especially after a few hours in the sun and against a headwind. At the finish, it usually is all smiles as you wave the judge, the headmaster, the janitor and the bee-keeper good-bye till next time.
Sport in the last analysis means exercise. As your concerned columnist, I confess that I tend to express myself at times a bit extravagantly and sometimes in a rather too extraordinary fashion. Be that as it may, I do extol the virtues of exercise, albeit excessive, even to the extent of exhaustion. I mean, it’s excellent and in fact the only way to extend your very existence. I therefore exhort you all to exult in the exquisite exuberance of physical exertion.
Go and take a long and brisk walk on Table Mountain or along the beach this week-end while contemplating the greatness that is Sport, whether professional or amateur.
Follow Women24 on Twitter
Our planet is beset with endless seemingly insurmountable problems which most of us, including people in power who should know better, choose to ignore. In this dismal scenario with rising tensions between the east and the west, Arabs and Israelis, Ukrainians and Russians, the developed and underdeveloped world, rich and poor, Muslim and Christian, men and women, to name but a few examples, the ultimate escape appears to be sport.
Is this cause for concern? I think not. Let me explain.
In a world beset with conflicts, sport brings us together. The many things that divide us such as nationality, religion, culture, language, race, gender and sexual orientation are all forgotten when we collectively watch a game of soccer, rugby or cricket.
We all know and understand the rules of the game and are not at all fazed by the fact that an important soccer game between a European and an African country will be adjudicated by a referee from the Middle East together with linesmen from the Far East in a South American country.
Together, we enjoy the talent, guts, perseverance and skill on display. Due to the different languages that we speak, we may find it difficult to communicate with one another but we are able to appreciate and understand the event whether it is a game of soccer, a cycle race or the Monaco Grand Prix. If only these hours of collective understanding could be extended indefinitely. Sadly, the so-called “real world” will have none of it.
To excel in sport requires commitment, continuous training, a healthy life style and both physical and mental strength. The rewards are great but only come the way of the most dedicated and determined competitors. The same principles should apply in our daily lives but all too often we find that people insist on hefty pay increases, regular promotions and a host of benefits without the commitment to loyalty and hard work.
Sport sets a laudable example which should be embraced by us all in our various activities whether as lawyers, brick layers, doctors or gardeners. We hide behind the excuse that exceptional talent guarantees sportsmen and -women their successes while conveniently forgetting the time and effort these men and women put into the honing of those skills and talents.
Sport teaches us the virtue of patience and acceptance.
We live in a world where instant gratification has become the norm. It is therefore good to see the time and effort it takes to score a goal in a closely contested soccer match or how one impatient shot can cause a player to lose either an important tennis match or a major golf tournament. We also tend to forget that for every winner who walks away with the prize money and who is lauded in the headlines of many newspapers, there are many who did not quite make it.
Nevertheless they continue to train and work even harder in the never-ending endeavour to achieve success in the next match, game or tournament without any certainty as to whether he or she will ever succeed. These amazing people realise and understand that life is a quest and that one must be prepared to settle for the nobility of the quest should it transpire that the accolades of success elude them in the end.
The wonder of partaking in amateur sport on the other hand, is simply that it removes the barriers between people. Take marathon running, cycling or canoeing for instance. The competitors are not at all interested to know whether you are an erudite academic, wealthy entrepreneur, respected lawyer, stone mason, postal clerk or electrician.
The issue is simply whether you have the mental strength and physical stamina to complete the marathon whether on your two feet, on your bicycle or in your canoe. Winning is not really the issue. As an amateur, you compete with yourself with the certain knowledge that you are bound to know yourself a bit better, especially after a few hours in the sun and against a headwind. At the finish, it usually is all smiles as you wave the judge, the headmaster, the janitor and the bee-keeper good-bye till next time.
Sport in the last analysis means exercise. As your concerned columnist, I confess that I tend to express myself at times a bit extravagantly and sometimes in a rather too extraordinary fashion. Be that as it may, I do extol the virtues of exercise, albeit excessive, even to the extent of exhaustion. I mean, it’s excellent and in fact the only way to extend your very existence. I therefore exhort you all to exult in the exquisite exuberance of physical exertion.
Go and take a long and brisk walk on Table Mountain or along the beach this week-end while contemplating the greatness that is Sport, whether professional or amateur.
Follow Women24 on Twitter
