Clubs are the grassroots of sport and as they dwindle, the problem is not receiving attention or resources.
All our top sportsmen and women began as youngsters at grassroots sport. That’s why it’s so important that grassroots sport needs to be healthy. At the moment it isn’t. T&T has a small population and is therefore at a disadvantage when it comes to participation levels. Clubs are the natural feeder system to the elite and world class level. Without strong and stable clubs, we will not have enough quality sportsmen and women, officials, administrators and volunteers. There is urgent need to raise the quality of coaching, access to facilities and resources that are available to clubs. In the absence of a thriving club structure, the nursery of sport is left with stillborn children. On the field of play, the world’s best are those who can do the basic and simple things better than everybody else. Work on the basics begins and is sustained at the grassroots level.
What are NSOs doing about their respective club and grassroots structure? Invariably, when the elite athletes and teams do well, sports administrators are more than willing to claim the praise for the win or medal or for the grassroots system in place. We all have our preconceived notions about what is needed, what is necessary and what should be done—but T&T sport has to be saved from those who come bearing gifts we could all do without. How do we consider the options in a way that leads to new possibilities and not merely back to the usual inadequate alternatives? The question frequently asked is what should I do? The important question however is, what should I think? Focusing on one part of the problem is a dead-end approach. What is needed is a broader view. Mere survival ought not to be the goal—second best is not good enough. We have to begin the journey for a better outcome than what we currently have on offer. We need to get past the notion that our perceptions and subjective opinions are objective reality. The danger is that when subjective is taken as reality, people are willing to take extreme action on the basis of subjectivity. When decision makers confuse their views and opinions for reality and facts, the end result is that what is inexcusable is determined to be right.
Sport in T&T can be self-sustaining and self-generating. Such a declaration is not a leap of faith but a leap of mind. To create everything from nothing and something from nothing requires thinking differently and more creatively and moving away from self-imposed limitations, value and belief systems and narrow and short-sighted thinking. As has been argued in previous columns, reliance on state funding has created a false economy and a comfort zone for those who have gotten lazy and no longer put their full efforts into fundraising. Access to state funding is often in such circumstances, a curse rather than a blessing. But be that as it may, if we look at what is required to become a champion in sport—weaknesses must become strengths, there must be a phenomenal team spirit, unity, camaraderie and an indomitable willingness to work hard, honesty, friendship and self-belief. In simple language, you must be prepared to go through hell as it takes real guts and big match temperament; all qualities and attributes that sports leaders and administrators should possess in abundance especially as most have come through the ranks of sport. So that the real question is: Where is the sense of community and objectivity that is needed if we are to circumnavigate the tumultuous storm of economic panic?
Source: www.guardian.co.tt
By Brian Lewis