The Essence of Sportsmanship 560.5
In the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria, six-time medalist Eugenio Monti from Italy was favored to win the gold medal in the bobsledding pair event. After his team’s last run, it looked like they were going to make it.
The British team, led by Tony Nash Jr., still had a chance, but before their final run, Nash discovered a critical axle bolt had broken on their sled. They were done. Without hesitation, Monti removed the bolt from his sled and rushed it up to Nash’s team. They were able to continue, and their run was so strong they won the gold medal.
The Italian press viciously criticized Monti for giving up the gold, but he was steadfast. "Nash didn’t win because I gave him the bolt," he said. "He won because he had the fastest run."
Olympic swimming medalist John Naber says a true sportsman, one who believes in the Olympic ideal, not only wants to win, he wants to win against his best opponent on his best day. A true sportsman is not elated, but disappointed, when top competitors are injured or disqualified.
Monti won the gold medal at the next Winter Olympics, but it was his willingness to lose that earned him a prominent place in Olympic history. His act represents sportsmanship at its best: the pursuit of victory with zeal and passion, recognizing that there’s no true victory without honor.
Today, with so many teams and athletes willing to cheat or behave badly to win, we need reminders of the noble potential of sports. Parents and coaches should teach youngsters that the real glory of sport is in the striving, not the winning.
This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.
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Comments
I'm glad Michael is telling this story. It is a regular lesson that I teach the kids I coach, along with a story about golfer Bobby Jones.
Jones was competing in the 1925 US Open when, unknown to anyone but himself, his ball moved ever so slightly as he addressed it in the rough. There were no referees to call a foul and no officials to slap him with a penalty. His playing partner didn't see the infraction, nor did his caddie or any spectators.
The tournament title hung in the balance, but when the round was completed, it soon became known that Jones had given himself a 1-stroke penalty. The ball moving did not help him any nor was it any great violation. But it happened, and those are the rules. So Jones thought nothing of it. That stroke cost him outright victory, and he then went on to lose a 36-hole playoff to Willie Macfarlane.
Afterward, when a sportswriter applauded Jones for his sportsmanship, the golfer asked him not to even write about the incident by saying "You might as well praise me for not robbing banks." Jones went on to conclude, "When you cheat, the only person you're cheating is yourself."
It's interesting to note that most of the time it's the parents and not the kids who really need these lessons. And while the media focuses on the negative behavior of athletes, there are far more examples of ethical behavior than we are led to believe. Maybe it's just that the press, and many parents, find robbing banks more "newsworthy."
Posted by: Kimo | April 4, 2008 10:51 AM