Sports figures as role models

It seems that the morality of athletes is at an all-time low. Michael Vick was convicted of dog fighting: Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, Mark McGuire, and Rafael Palmero were convicted (as of now by the public, but later probably by a judge and jury) of steroid use: Practically everyone on the Cincinnati Bengals has committed a crime. Adam "Pac Man" Jones made it rain in a gentleman's club, even Michael Jordan had trouble with gambling, and now Michael Phelps has admitted to smoking marijuana and Alex Rodriguez allegedly tested positive for steroids in 2003. It has been argued that the money and fame also comes with a responsibility to the public to be role models. Therefore, they must behave in a particular way and live up to our standards. The question is: should we be looking up to these people in the first place?These athletes do have a responsibility to the children who look up to them. Children, who are at an impressionable age, are susceptible to follow the actions of those whom they look up to. In a society where parents are nowhere to be found, children must find their own role models. When a kid outgrows cartoons, or even before, he may turn to following sports. One of the favorite topics of discussion on shows like SportsCenter is the latest run- in with the law of our beloved athletes. A child, who has inevitably picked athletes to idolize, sees that one of his favorite athletes has committed a crime. There is certainly an anxiety among our society that children will see these actions and assume that, because their favorite football player took steroids, that this behavior is okay. There is also a concern that a child will see his favorite player fall from grace and will be deeply saddened by this discovery.

People are quick to become nostalgic about athletes of old. However, athletes have been behaving badly for years. In the early days of baseball, Ty Cobb was a notoriously dirty player. He used to sharpen his spikes before a game. On one instance, he was beaned by an opposing pitcher. At his next at bat, he laid a bunt down the first base side. When the pitcher ran to pick up the ball, Cobb knocked him over and dug his spikes into his chest, cutting open his chest and sending him to the hospital. The Black Sox scandal of the 1919 World Series, in which eight players were implicated in a conspiracy to throw the World Series for money, also showed athletes in a less than positive light. It goes back to at least 5th century BC Greece. Cleomedes, a Greek Olympic athlete, killed his opponent with a tactic which was later ruled illegal. When he was accused of cheating, his prize was rescinded. In a rage, he killed sixty children by causing the roof of their school house to collapse.

There are clearly enough instances to prove that athletes are not automatically heroes and thus it should not be assumed that they are. So, why is there a fascination with athletes who commit crimes? Athletes are, in fact, human beings just like the rest of us. Humans make mistakes, no matter how much more publicized they may be. This fascination with athletes who commit crimes must stem from the fact that we forget that they are humans. The spotlight that they are under gives them an aura of a divine being. Perhaps the barrage of sports news is responsible for the widely held belief that athletes are getting worse. Athletes have always been celebrities, but since the phenomena of the accessibility to sports twenty-four hours a day, they are under an unprecedented spotlight. Their superhuman exploits are shown at such a rate that their feats are imprinted in our brains.

Surely we should not stop idolizing athletes. However, it should be made clear to children - and we should remind ourselves, as well - that athletes are to be idolized for their talents and not their behavior. Athletes can be role models, but it should not be assumed that they will be. The question inevitably arises: with whom does the fault lie? In the end, everyone is at fault. Parents should be there for their children to provide a good role model and inform their children about which sports figures should be held in high esteem. Athletes make a - sometimes unspoken agreement that with the fame they receive, they also receive a responsibility to live up to society's morals, at least when they aren't behind closed doors. We must not become lazy and must constantly ask ourselves: Is this a person I should look up to?