The i9 website states that 70% of kids drop out of sports by age 13 because it's no longer fun or has become a negative experience. Kids are pushed to specialize in one sport (instead of playing many different ones) to earn scholarships or go pro, though only a minuscule percentage of players achieve either, and they often end up with physical injuries from repeated strain on certain body parts.
Brad Stulberg took to Instagram to share that the country's approach to youth sports could be part of the reason why. Obviously Norway and winter sports kind of go hand-in-hand, but Stulberg points out that the country does things a lot differently than countries like America or Canada, where youth sports often feel more like minor league tryouts than kids learning sportsmanship, athleticism, and skills.
It's a familiar scene at a youth sports event: a parent disagrees with a call or is unhappy with their child's time on the field, or perhaps they are unhappy with another player, and they loudly voice their opinion to the coach or the referee, or even another parent. Things turn heated quickly, interrupting the game, embarrassing the children, and generally causing discomfort all around.
At the curling station in the gymnasium, students pushed forward little benches on wheels that they use in gym class instead of using curling stones. The school also created a scoreboard. "Not everything is perfect," Robin said. Upstairs, there was an ice fishing station, where the school set up cardboard boxes with white construction paper meant to look like snow on the outside. It magnetized fish and seals and put them inside.
The challenge of managing parents ranks among the top reasons coaches have considered leaving or decided to quit, with one coach saying of parents: "They created tension. They instilled distrust. They were worse than children." Other reasons for coaches' disaffection included retirement and challenges within their sporting organizations. More than 35% of respondents said that they also experienced discrimination based on sex, age and physical appearance from other coaches as well as parents of athletes.
After stitching a clip of Economic Liberties Senior Legal Fellow Katherine Van Dyck testifying in front of the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education, where she dropped the unfortunate data that while almost 50% of parents believe they are going to help their kid get that college scholarship for sports, only 2% of kids actually end up getting them.
Lifelong sports fan Snoop Dogg has officially joined Team USA, being named its first-ever honorary coach a role he's taken on for next year's Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy. In his new position, Coach Snoop will join the rest of the staff, coaches, medical experts, administrators and partners who help athletes chase their dreams and inspire the nation, while lending his signature humor and heart to help motivate Team USA, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee said in a statement.
If you've ever spent three hours freezing your butt off on a cold sideline, packed team snacks at 6 a.m., or Googled "best portable stadium chair that won't destroy my spine," welp, congrats! You're officially a sports mom. Your kid is probably always running, climbing, dribbling, swingling, tumbling, or, like, all of the above - meaning you know that little athletes come with big energy and big gear needs.
Austin's cricket club, Ferntree Gully, posted on Facebook on Thursday calling on people to put your bats out for Benny, replicating the gesture that followed Hughes' death. Dozens of other posts under the hashtag #batsoutforben have followed, highlighting the impact the incident has had on Australia's cricket community. Cricket Victoria's chief executive, Nick Cummins, was emotional in addressing media on Thursday.
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday signed legislation to study inequalities in youth sports, a move likely to draw ire from Republicans who believe the measure is intended to support transgender athletes. The legislation, Assembly Bill 749, creates a commission to examine whether a new state board or department is needed to improve access to sports regardless of race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, income or geographic location.
A youth football coach in Connecticut was arrested after allegedly pushing a 7-year-old player to the ground on Sunday. There was a disturbance between two assistant coaches after the New Milford Bulls coach allegedly pushed a player from the opposing team, the Water-Oak 7U Team, after a play on the field, according to New Milford police. No injuries were reported, police say.
If you're roaming the hallways or lunchrooms of American schools, you might think that kids are suddenly really into math. You'll hear everyone from elementary age kids to high schoolers yell "six seven!" or "41!!!" to their friends with glee. I'm here to report to my fellow adults that brainrot has gotten so rotted that Gen Alpha - kids under 14, or so - are just saying numbers as memes.
Eric Jacob Layton was arrested in 2023 at his University City home on allegations of posing as a doctor, sports reporter, massage therapist and youth sports modeling agent in order to obtain sexually explicit photographs from minors and arrange in-person meetings with the juveniles, officials said. The FBI said victims who participated in youth sports were primarily targeted and that Layton presented himself as a sports massage therapist named Travis Parkin who specialized in youth athletics, as well as a sports physician named Dr. Alexis Iniesta.
A bus carrying a junior high football team to a game crashed on Saturday north of Pittsburgh, sending 21 of the 28 people onboard to the hospital, officials said. Twenty-five Aliquippa junior high students and three adults were headed to a game in nearby Gibsonia. The crash occurred in Economy Borough, about 20 miles north of Pittsburgh. The Economy Borough police chief, Michael O'Brien, said he didn't have information on the medical status of those taken to hospitals.
Mason Howell, at 18 years, one month and three weeks old, became the third-youngest champion in history, capturing the trophy with a dominating 7 and 6 victory.
Rochon claimed the 2025 U18 Fischer Outdoor Junior National Championship in girls' singles at the end of July. She trains six days a week, committing a lot of time to tennis and fitness.
