My connection to sport is through volleyball. I have been playing this sport for thirteen years. Growing up, my dad was and still is a very famous basketball player in Puerto Rico, and my mom thought it was a good recreational idea to follow in his footsteps. So, ever since I was 8 years old my new "hobby" was volleyball. Although it started out as a hobby, situations in life made me mature pretty fast, and with my parents going through a divorce, I decided at the age of 11 that I had to find a way in which I could pay for my own education. Therefore, volleyball went from being a recreational hobby to my profession and the way I get paid is through school.
I think the role of sport in the US society is really important. For international students like me its the ability to obtain a scholarship and save your parents the stress of being in debt for paying with money they don't really have. As for Americans I believe that many share my same story/ background and a sport is a pathway to getting a degree. In US society sport is passion and hard work, sport brings people together, it is a staircase to success, and if it is done well with integrity and resilience it has positive outcomes. I believe this is true because I have had the blessing of getting to know and understand US society's both in a good way and in a bad way. Based on my experience I think athletes hold a high position in society and are respected if they are good, when they are struggling it might be a different story. Anyhow, athletes are valued for what they had to go through in order to be where they are now.
I agree that sport in the US is very important. Although there are some negatives, I think the positives out weigh them greatly.
ReplyDelete-Conner Morris
I like that you brought up what sport can do for international students because most of the time we focus only on the way american society can benefit from sport.
ReplyDelete-Andee Navarette