Does sports even matter now?

 

  

The consequential effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have reverberated to humans all over the world, regardless of the usual significant and determining factors such as class, race, or religion. 

In what some may consider to be the battle of our generation, lives have been lost while many more hang in the balance; uncertainty looms as mankind waits for a remedy; and free-spirited souls have been quarantined to their homes as an effort to prevent the novel coronavirus from further spreading. 

The overall importance of sports is a topic worth monitoring in a time like this – most prominently, it’s worth asking if sports’ eminence should hold as much seriousness when “normal” returns, whenever that may be or however it may look.

That’s a conversation for another day, but this is a fact: whether pre, during, or post outbreak, athletes are and always will be role models to their fans. 

Not all of them are perfect, but the world has been fortunate to have enough standout talents and remarkable beings who inspire thousands not only to exceed expectations in their respective sporting adventure of choice, but also in other aspects of life, which in most occasions hold greater importance than putting a ball through a hoop.

What does sports mean to you? Is it a 10- or 15-minute break away from mundane work to watch Steph Curry fire from 30 feet deep? 

Is it a reason to get the college barkada together over the weekend to eat wings and cheer for your alma mater? 

Is it a form of escapism from the realities of the world, one that’s healthier than alcoholism or drug use?

Sports is magnetic. It brings humans together. It gives us something to talk about. Something to root for. Some form of hope.

That’s important in this often unpleasant world.  

Think about it: why do we obsess over endless debates such as who was better between LeBron James or Michael Jordan when both men equally devoted himself to playing basketball at such a high level? 

It’s because both LeBron and Mike are our real-life movie stars. Our Leonardo and Brad. They are the superheroes whose posters we hang on the wall; whose signature shoes we save up for to play with, in a vain but admirable effort to be like Mike or feel like ‘Bron; whose every step and word we want to know; and whose glamour we can’t get enough of. 

“He (Michael Jordan) transcended celebrity,” stated Bill Simmons, a basketball historian. 

Many of us grew up hearing only of the legend about MJ and his Bulls, arguably the greatest NBA team ever assembled, and icons who became larger than the game. Those who were fortunate enough to watch them in their heyday remain in awe and appreciation. 

The man known as “His Airness” became larger than life. LeBron might be the greatest basketball player ever, in terms of perfecting every part of the game – from the fundamentals to his otherworldly IQ – but Jordan will forever be the greatest winner ever (with all due respect to Bill Russell). 

When people think of “basketball,” their minds still gravitate towards “Michael Jordan.”

And that is why people will defend MJ as their “GOAT” until their last breath. It’s not just because he won 6 rings, had a maniac-like level of competitiveness, or always hit the big shot when it counted most. 

It’s because the image of Michael Jordan – from the way he walked to the way he talked and the way he glided in air – will always be the ideal image of what “winning” feels like. 

That is why sports matters. It’s invigorating. It makes us want to strive harder and aim higher. It makes us want to dream. It makes us want to be just like Mike. Even LeBron, who wore number 23, wanted the same. 

Should sports take a backseat as the world faces an unprecedented situation unlike any before? Absolutely. Sporting events from all over the world, from the NBA to the Olympics, have been either canceled or postponed, and the fact that nearly all of them don’t have a particular return date is gut-wrenching.

Not all human beings who lie in their hospital beds while fighting to breathe – imagine that painful but very real image for a second – think of their richer and more famous favorite athlete as a motivational way of survival. 

But maybe some do. 

Maybe there is someone who remembers how Alyssa Valdez and those “Heartstong” Ateneo Lady Eagles didn’t cower to intimidation against mighty De La Salle. 

Maybe there’s someone who finds motivation in how Hidilyn Diaz rallied from behind to make history as a silver medal-winning Olympian. 

Someone who remembers how Jimmy Alapag and the Philippines relinquished the demons of South Korea.

How Manny Pacquiao, the record-breaking boxer, got up whenever he was punched down. 

Or maybe, it’s someone who helped you along the way.

Isn’t that what life is about? Isn’t it about getting hit over and over and over again, feeling weak in the knees, discouraged by obstacles, and close to giving up, but staying unwilling to give in? 

Isn’t it about staying headstrong in the face of a virus that threatens to derail existence, a stream of continuous grim news, and a government whose actions are often ridiculed?

Isn’t it it about coming together as one to fight what aims to take away our freedom – the very thing that makes us feel alive? 

Isn’t it about helping each other?

Interns from medical schools in the Philippines have been pulled out and called to action as frontliners, as an effort to limit the spread of the pandemic. A sum of 100 volunteers from Philippine General Hospital stayed on as volunteers even if they could have left. 

One of them, Ven Ponce from University of the Philippines, is also a taekwondo black belter and frisbee player. When she suited up for Sunken Pleasure, the Ultimate Frisbee team of UP Diliman, she established a friendship with a star player of the team, Bullet Dumas, who helped her find her true sporting passion amongst other appealing choices.

“He and I recently actually got to talking a few days ago,” she said in an interview. “He reminded me that in life, like in frisbee… you don’t think about scoring one for yourself but for your whole team. 

“During this crisis, I think that’s what’s most important. Medical school, training –  you do that to improve yourself, but for what? For whom?”

“Your teammates. Your kababayans.”

There’s more to sports than what meets the eyes. 

And for somebody who could use some hope, something that little could go a long way. – Rappler.com