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johnlennonlives

Listed below are comments made by johnlennonlives between Tuesday, 12th August 2008 and Wednesday, 13th August 2008.

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Why the Water Cube is so fast - and my tip for another GB gold 1:13pm on 13 Aug 2008 Backdrafting: Thank you (although I'm female!). I was very careful throughout my piece to not apportion blame to any one person or group of people in particular - just the ethics.
Why the Water Cube is so fast - and my tip for another GB gold 11:39pm on 12 Aug 2008 "Gemma wasn't just disappointed to have missed the bronze medal, she was disappointed not to have won the race."

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How refreshing is it to see those words about a British competitor?

Tom Daley has really got it made. He's made it clear from the very beginning when he was selected for the Olympics that he was going there "for the experience". Tom's publicity advisor has got the right idea...Tom can't let the country down. If he fails in his Olympic bid, it's okay because he was only there "for the experience". If, however, he manages to get a medal, he becomes the nation's darling, as the little 14 year old, who only went to the Olympics for the experience, but came away with a medal. The nation's already on his side; Blake Aldridge makes a spur of the moment comment suggesting that nerves got the better of Tom...and Blake becomes public enemy number one.

But, I'm sorry, but I agree with Blake Aldridge. Where has the competitive edge gone from our nation? Have we just become so accustomed to losing, that we teach our children to prepare for it over anything else?

Competitive sport has been phased out in our schools, because it was emotionally damaging to the children that lost. Now, there are not allowed to be winners and losers at sports days. At 25 years old, I don't expect to be reminiscing about the old days, but what is wrong with encouraging a competitive nature? Rather than pussy-footing around the children who don't achieve, why can't the teachers do their jobs properly, and find out what these children are good at? Everybody is good at something, and it's just a matter of finding out what, and encouraging it.

As an ex-competitive swimmer, I know the heartache of losing a race or competition. I was never going to be the best swimmer in the world, and certainly lost more races than I won...but each time I lost, it made me more hungry to go out and win the next time. And when I did win, those multiple losses just made the occasional swim that little bit sweeter.

I'm not emotionally scarred or damaged because I lost races. At school I was terrible at team games...but it never upset me because I knew what I was good at. And my family, teachers and coaches encouraged my strengths. Yes, I am now a very competitive person, always striving to make an impact in my workplace and win in team competitions. It's terrible, isn't it?!

As a swimming teacher, I am no longer allowed to 'teach' a child to swim. The Amatuer Swimming Association (ASA) have published a new teaching plan, which has been brought in line with the national curriculum for children. We are now told to teach children through games and play, which in theory is great...for the under 5s. But not for 10-14 year olds, the age at which most children give up sport. I'm sorry, but I am loathe to patronise a young adult in the way that the new plan encourages us to. And I dread to think what the parents, paying £60-odd for a course of swimming lessons, think when they see their 14 year old child playing 'What's the Time, Mr Shark?".

At the age of 7, I'd joined my first competitive swimming club. I was competing in club time-trials at the age of 8, and competing in galas from the age of 9. My two clubs had an excellent team spirit. At galas, every person in our team who wasn't swimming in the current race, shouted themselves hoarse cheering eachother on. Winners were congratulated, losers were commiserated. But we all went out to win, both for ourselves and for the team.

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THAT? What is wrong with a competitive edge and team spirit?

Nowadays, the ASA National Teaching Plan tells us to teach the 'FUNdamentals' of swimming until late childhood. Then we can teach swim skills. This is followed, at adolescence, to 'train to train' (ie beginning to introduce fitness and technical training - the teaching guide clearly states to not focus on competition). At early adult, we can start to train to compete. However, it's not until adulthood that we're allowed to train to win!

Based on that guidance, which is the same curriculum for all sports in the UK, Tom Daley shouldn't even be thinking about competing yet. I should only have started to think about winning a couple of years ago - heaven forbid what they'd have made of me competing at the age of 8. And I dread to think what may happen in a war, if our younger soldiers are being taught to go out, not to win, but for the experience!

The British Olympic committee have said that they've entered a young team in the Olympics this year, to give them the experience, so we're ready for 2012. But is that not disencouraging the competitors this time around?

Let's bring back the competitive spirit to our schools and our children. Let's teach them the feeling of self-pride and achievement when they win. Let them experience the heartache of loss, teach them how to overcome it, becoming stronger people emotionally, and let them taste the hunger and determination to beat the competition next time. EVERYONE has their strengths - play to them, rather than wrapping weaknesses up in cotton wool. Perhaps then, the next 14 year old boy wonder, representing GB in the Olympics, won't lose his nerve.

I somehow doubt that Michael Phelps has ever been told to "just go out there for the experience".

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