Are we ready to talk about youth sports yet?

On March 11th I met with the Superintendent of our school district to discuss the likelihood of indefinitely postponing the Wisconsin Wrestling Federation (WWF) Kid's Qualifier that was scheduled to take place at our high school on March 20-21.  Decisions were being made rapidly that week and information was changing by the minute.  The term "social distancing" hadn't been fully understood yet and the "flattening the curve" conversation was in its infancy.  Our school administration was hesitant to pull the trigger on an event that was over a week away because they had more pressing issues with events that immediate weekend.  Addressing future events wasn't on the table.  My dad (chairman of the WWF) agreed with administration that it would soon be the right decision to postpone in spite of the pressure from other board members who were pushing for the events to proceed.

Soon after that meeting, the NCAA announced that they were canceling the NCAA DIII Wrestling Championships.  Then came the Final Four basketball tournament and the NCAA DI NCAA Wrestling Championships that were set to take place at US Bank Stadium only 35 minutes away from.  The NBA, MLB and NCAA were all on hold.  Of course, the WWF State Tournament series was postponed as were all other "large gatherings," which included youth sports of all types.

That's where we still are today.

So, are we ready to have a conversation about the state of youth sports yet?  As you know, I'm full of opinions on this subject.  I'm actually shocked that there hasn't been an uprising of "soccer moms" and "hockey dads" (I'm not singling out any sports...don't miss the point).  Our entire economy has been affected and youth sports is big business in the United States.  There are also a lot of families who don't have much else outside of their sports communities.

Thankfully, many of the organizations and businesses who make a living off youth sports seem to have carried a healthy perspective with this shut-down.  This has served their members well because there's no other option.  They've been creative in reaching their athletes in various ways and a lot of great online content has become available.  In fact, it will likely usher in new opportunities for coaches and clubs to be involved with athletes.

It was time for our sports culture to hit the "pause" button and recognize that there is more to life than youth trophies and games.  It took a nationwide shut-down, though, because it wasn't going to happen on its own.  Parents have been forced to take a break from hustling from one practice to the next.  They would not have chosen to.  It's given kids the opportunity to get to bed a decent time.  Parents wouldn't have prioritized that.  In spite of this, there really haven't been status updates with rants about missing out on opportunities for their children to reach the next level or catch that elusive college scholarship or other misguided and uniformed motivations for the craziness.

That's good, right?

How long are we going to be okay with this, though?  Is this opening up a change to status quo?  Is the hectic scheduling and over-emphasizing youth games gone?  Will parents value down time for their children?

Or are youth organizations chomping at the bit to get the green light to do it all over again?  Will parents incorrectly assume that they've missed out and push hard to make-up for lost time?  Will organizations double down and increase their reach?  Are sports going to be forced to operate in other seasons, essentially eliminating "seasons" all together?

For several years, I've said that we are a part of a youth sports system that is broken.  It replaces development with short cuts to success at young ages.  Our youth athletes are getting too much, too soon.  And, frankly, the lives of several families revolve around the sports calendar of their elementary aged children.  As we've seen, sports can be taken from us at a moments notice for many reasons.  Our identity should never be sports.

Here's your opportunity people.  This is when you can make things right.  Or, at least, consider what is right.

Are leaders looking at this shut down as a possible avenue to improve our product?  Are parents willing to "put their foot down" and resist the unreasonable demands of their children's involvement? Once and for all, are we willing to do what is best for children or will we continue doing what parents want?

What do you think?