The Empowering Ability of Sport: This I Believe

This week’s post again involves a slight variation; one which is more personalized yet provides an overall explanation for the reason behind my chosen blog topic of sports. The entry is inspired by the This I Believe (their logo is displayed on the left) national media project, which is based on a radio series by renowned American radio broadcast journalist Edward Murrow. The series aimed “to point to the common meeting grounds of beliefs, which is the essence of brotherhood and the floor of our civilization” during a time of potential atomic warfare, increasing consumerism, and moral decadence. Today, the project has gained significant momentum and evolved into one that promotes written expression of individual core beliefs. In the spirit of This I Believe, I would like to say that many of the principles by which I lead my life by have been acquired over a variety of experiences, but most notably through my exposure to athletics.

The rush I experience from sport is unparalleled. Some have likened me to the testosterone charged, borderline rowdy men present at sporting events. I grew up playing sports and have been competing internationally since the third grade. Whether derived from an emphatic kill, an ace serve, or simply the roar of the crowd, that fleeting yet powerful charge of emotion I receive from sport, has yet to be matched. This passion is a virtually indescribable feeling; it cannot be quantified or weighed, but it is undeniably real. According to Street and Smith’s Sports Business Journal, passion is the driving force of the $194.64 billion dollar sports industry. It is the reason why fans spend hundreds of dollars on their USC gear, arrive at games as if they had just swum in a pool of cardinal and gold, or travel nationwide to witness their Trojans fight on in a sporting event.

It was through sport that I discovered my true potential. I had been relatively idle for half a year, simply breeding anger and contempt, till I saw a sign for the annual Manila Polo Club Tennis Championship Tournament. I set a goal for myself–to be the new champion for the tournament in August, a good six months away. I had not touched a tennis racket in years, and when tournament time had arrived; I was nervous but well prepared from months of rigorous, daily training. I ended up qualifying for the finals, which is where I faced defeat. I was sad to be the runner up, but the fact that I had qualified after a five year hiatus was very uplifting. It was the first tie in a long time that I had set a non-immediate goal for myself and achieved it for the most part. I did it by myself too; there was no teacher hounding me, no grades, and no parents. It was then that I became truly aware of the empowering ability of sport. It has provided me with a better understanding of the relationship between dedication and achieving results and led me to believe in the fantastic capabilities that sport evokes from we human beings both physically and mentally.

These beliefs have influenced my career path and aspirations. Like athletics, I find journalism empowering as it involves not only being aware of global affairs, but also the responsibility of accurately and objectively informing the public. Blame it on my curious nature, but I relish being in the know. However, reading or merely listening to the news does not suffice. Only through first-hand experience is one truly appreciative of the gravity of a news situation, which is why the journalist is of utmost importance as he/she sheds light on such events to those of us that are not present. In other words, it is poles apart to hear about the World Cup finals and the infamous Zidane head butt (shown on the right), and another experience to be one of the thousands of screaming fans in the arena witnessing arguably one of the greatest sporting events. However, since not all of us are fortunate enough to attend such an event, the journalist brings this news to the forefront serving as a liaison between the events and the people. So this is why I choose journalism, and why I believe in sport, both have that awesome ability to empower.