Sports are activities that involve the competitive use of physical abilities and skills. These include individual and team sports that require athletic skill, speed, reflexes, dexterity, and agility.
Sports play an important role in the socialization of young people, and some youth become involved in sports throughout their lives, while others do not. Many questions remain about how sports influence an individual’s character, relationships, thoughts, and feelings.
Athletes experience a wide range of emotions while participating in their sports, including anticipation, excitement, and frustration. These feelings are shaped by both their self-evaluation and their perception of other athletes’ evaluations.
These feelings are also influenced by the subculture of the sport, which provides “feeling rules” to guide athletes as they manage their emotions. These rules often include expectations for what is acceptable in terms of body language, facial expressions, or the display of emotions such as “butterflies in the stomach” before and during a performance.
In addition to helping children develop the skills of communication, leadership, and resilience, sports can also help them learn to work as a team and cope with stress. Keeping sports fun is also an important part of the process.