Before the Champion, the Child

This is a time of year when many families make decisions about the upcoming sports season. Registrations open, clubs are chosen, equipment is purchased, and the same questions arise: football or swimming? Gymnastics or judo? Should the child continue with last year's sport or try something different? Stay with the same club or switch?

Often, these decisions are guided by the search for the sport where the child might have the most success, the club where they'll have the best chance to win, or the environment that seems to offer the most promising future. However, perhaps this isn't the best guiding principle. The most important question shouldn't be 'in which sport can they achieve the most success?', but rather 'what experiences do they need for their development?'

I bring up this reflection because, as the new sports season approaches, it's important to remember that the way we increasingly view children's sports seems to be drifting away from the real needs of child development and the true functions of sport. Children are not sports prodigies or miniature professional athletes. They are, first and foremost, children in full development, for whom sport has, and should have, a crucial role.

In childhood, sport shouldn't just be a training ground. Nor should it be a time for specialization or the realization of dreams that, often, don't even belong to the child. Instead, it should function as a developmental laboratory. Running, jumping, throwing, catching, balancing, falling, and getting back up are experiences that help build fundamental motor skills.

Cooperating, competing, respecting rules, dealing with frustration, and finding solutions all contribute to cognitive, emotional, and social development. Different sports present different challenges to the body and mind. It is precisely in this diversity that much of their value lies.

Experimenting broadens a child's repertoire. Trying different sports allows them to adapt to new environments, equipment, rules, and relationships, discovering what they enjoy and where they feel most competent. It also ensures that any future choice is informed by experience, rather than being predetermined by adults.

Erik Erikson, a classic author in developmental psychology, argued that during childhood, a child needs to explore, propose activities, try, fail, try again, and realize they are capable of learning. Competence isn't built solely through immediate success, but primarily through the opportunity to face challenges, progressively master new tasks, and understand that mistakes are also part of learning.

Not all children need to specialize early. Some don't even need to choose a single sport. The goal of children's sports participation doesn't have to be to prepare for a career, achieve a level of excellence, or anticipate future results.

We need to stop looking for a Cristiano Ronaldo, a Fernando Pimenta, or a Telma Monteiro in every child. There's nothing wrong with seeking excellence, but it's wrong to make that excellence the central focus of children's sports and a demand that precedes the child's own development.

Before asking a child to choose a path, we should allow them to explore several. Before seeking a champion, we should help foster someone self-confident, competent, and with strong values. Talent may reveal itself later. The willingness to invest may also come later. But first, we need to provide space to run, jump, fall, change, and discover.