Good sports

We are officially into winter, which means the winter sports are in full swing!

For parents, you get the delight of braving the wind and rain on the sidelines, and for young people, you get the joy of getting into the game!

There’s no doubt that sport on the Coast and across New Zealand makes up a big part of who we are and how we spend our weekends. In fact, research from Sport NZ shows that being physically active creates happier, healthier people, better connected communities and a stronger New Zealand. That’s a win for everyone! Furthermore, sport is a great teacher, one of the greatest lessons I have learnt over the years from being in the game is sportsmanship. Growing up on the Coast, I enjoyed playing a range of sports for school and local clubs, and certainly giving it my best shot on the court or field.

Whilst I loved playing sport, I wasn’t the kid to get the Player of the Year award at prizegiving. As my friends celebrated their great accolades and top achievements, I found my parents creating space on a trophy shelf for sportsmanship awards – my Hibiscus Coast Netball Year 8 Sportsmanship trophy still features to this day!

However, at the time I thought it was more of a sign of failure, I didn’t reach the top in sport so instead I got a well done for beingnice-on-the-court award!

However, over the years, I have come to realise that good sportsmanship is everything. I’ve watched opponents smash their tennis racquets, fights break out on