Sport is an activity that involves exerting all, if not most parts of your body at once.
It sends dopamine rushing through your body and sends adrenaline coursing through your veins. It is invigorating and intoxicating all at once.
But it may come as a surprise that youth sports today, is on the decline. And the reasons behind it goes deeper than one might think.
The first could be because of the increase in our sedentary lifestyle.
“Kids nowadays are mostly addicted to mobile phones, and they want to stay in their own room, with air-conditioning, rather than go out and do sports under the sun,” said Gan Wei Cher, 16, a sports enthusiast who is passionate about volleyball.
A study by Jama Paediatrics in 2022, showed a common thread, which was unsurprising: children are spending more time online these days. With new and more advanced smartphones and tablets, they have more than enough reason to bask in the digital world, rather than getting the blood circulating through exercise.
Moreover, youth sports seem to be getting more competitive these days.
According to a poll by the National Alliance for Youth Sports in 2016, 70 per cent of aspiring athletes quit by the age of 13, saying that sports was no longer fun and becoming too competitive.
“I have thought about quitting several times due to the competition. It just isn’t fun anymore,” said Jennifer, 16, a track runner from Selangor.
Parents could unknowingly exert more pressure on the athletes, as often, it is they that want to win, more than the athletes themselves – so that their kid will be in the one per cent that will get full athletic scholarships. Some coaches also exhibit this behaviour.
Furthermore, schoolchildren in the modern era are becoming more preoccupied with academics and extracurricular activities, allocating a decreasing amount of time for physical activity and sports. This was especially so in a 2020 study by Karel Fromel and her colleagues on the effects of academics on physical activity.
“It is tough for me to balance my academic pursuits in Mathematics and handle swim training at the same time,” said Jong Qing Fung, 16, a passionate swimmer from Kajang.
Chua Yun Ni, 15, a badminton trainee, added: “Most of my close friends have busy schedules packed with tuitions and different classes, leaving them with less time to do sports,” Chua said.
However, it is crucial that sports isn’t neglected as part of a lifestyle, especially for adolescents and children. In addition to promoting an active lifestyle, sports can also positively affect cognitive functions and boost memory retention and academic performance, according to a piece in Sports Medicine in 2015.
Sports is a medium to express passion and determination – it should not be seen as a burden.
To give the younger generation an avenue to express themselves, Twentytwo13 has a dedicated space called Young Voices. If you are a young writer (aged 17 and below) and would like to have your article published on our news website, send your contribution to editor@twentytwo13.my.
All articles must be accompanied by the young writer’s full name, MyKad number, contact number, and the mobile number of the young writer’s parents/guardians for verification purposes.
The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the writer and do not necessarily represent that of Twentytwo13.
