The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Were you ever the kid in physical education that was always picked last? You prayed for the day that your name would be one of the first to be called by a classmate. If it did, the teacher picked the teams that day or you were chosen among the first because you're on the nerd team anyway. It's tough to be in that situation. Try being a coach where, because the number of students in the school is so limited, you don't have many options in which you pick quality players. I spoke to senior Kopper Kweens coach Karen Clark about this. One of the first things she asked me was if I was aware of how many students Thompson's R.D. Parker has. I had no clue until phoning the school and her telling me. They have 1,110 students. The point she was making is that since Thompson has more students, coaches have the luxury of selecting a quality team. Which, if you're that nerdy kid who is always chosen last, the chances of you making the team really aren't good. Sports is about having fun, developing skills and it brings out competitiveness. Unfortunately, that can be a negative. Any school gym you enter, chances are they have banners hanging from the walls or rafters for a championship. Look behind those banners and there is a story of the team they defeated. This is the fuel that builds rivalries. Anyone who pays attention to school sports, or was involved knows, about Hapnot's rivalry with R.D. Parker. The road to success for Hapnot tends to go through Thompson. With the basketball season soon to start, coaches are faced with tough decisions. In this sport, if your head can touch the ceiling, chances are you're going to make the team, even if you don't have much for skills. By the way, that ceiling is 15 feet high. This sport doesn't favour vertically-challenged athletes, though that doesn't mean they should be written off. If you're that short kid who always gets picked last, stay positive, your speed is needed. Just think of Spud Webb, who played in the NBA at five-feet-five-inches, or Tyrone "Mugsy" Bogues, who was five-feet-three-inches. Some athletes are only on a team because they have one skill, an important one. I told Clark I played basketball when I was in elementary school. I had decent skills, but by no means was I an all-star. What I could do what shoot Ð from half-court Ð and it was nothing but net. I should've been called 'Mr. Swoosh'. "Can you still do it now?" she asks. I responded that if I took 10 shots, I could likely still sink three shots. When it comes to any sport, if the athlete has the skills to play, they should be on the team. In high school athletics, winning shouldn't interfere with kids being on a team. The question is, should winning really be important at this level?2/12/05
