"Whatsoever passeth beyond the limits of moderation will cease to exert a beneficial influence."Below are experts from a very thoughtful article in The Times Online that highlights the limits of specialization (and idolization) in sports, with reference to pro-golfer Tiger Woods. Read it in full here.
"Whoso cleaveth to justice, can, under no circumstances, transgress the limits of moderation. He discerneth the truth in all things, through the guidance of Him Who is the All-Seeing. ... All...things are subject to this same principle of moderation."
- Bahá'u'lláh, in Tablets 169 and Gleanings 343-4 respectively.
December 3, 2009Tiger must grow up – and his fans must let him
by Ed Smith
Once sport was a way to build character, now it tries to eliminate it. So it’s no surprise when the cracks start to show
The Woods legend has entrenched the cult of professional obsession, the Malcolm Gladwell view that anyone can be a genius so long as they practise for 10,000 hours. Woods has been the ultimate pin-up boy for that way of life. It’s long overdue for a serious rethink. Brilliant sportsmen, whatever they may tell you, are a lot like everyone else. Yes, sportsmen have to make sacrifices to get to the top; yes, there is a lot of pressure when they get there; yes, it’s a tough life. So is being a great surgeon, so is being a great teacher, so is being a great actor.
The pursuit of excellence, whatever the discipline, demands bravery and dedication. Sporting exceptionalism — that sport is a special realm populated by a superbreed — is a myth sold to gullible fans to boost TV viewing figures. ...
Doing only one thing for ever, without ever wondering if it can be entirely fulfilling, suits very few human beings.
It is a practical point as well as a moral one. Excessive narrowness isn’t just bad for you as a person, it’s bad for you as a performer. ...
The monomania of Tiger Woods or Geoff Boycott doesn’t work for many people. Now we are learning that it isn’t even working for Tiger Woods.
And anyway, surely one day it is only natural that golfers must fall out of love with golf. ...
Tiring of sport should be considered an essential part of growing up, a human badge of honour, not a cause for reproach. Professional sport is stuck in a dangerous state of arrested development where it demands that grown adults indefinitely retain the egotistical narrow-mindedness of teenagers. ...
Let's hope Woods’ unravelling prompts a shift in mood. So far he has been the standard-bearer for our age of professionalism: workaholic relentlessness, nothing left to chance, the elimination of emotion, it’s only the winning that counts, say nothing, follow the endorsements. ...
Now it is time for Act II... It’s time we all grew up — and allowed sportsmen to do the same.
Ed Smith is a former England cricketer. He is now a Times leader writer. www.edsmith.org.uk
Read the full article here.
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