Unsportsmanlike Conduct in Professional Sports

Unsportsmanlike Conduct in Professional Sports

In today’s world there are many professional athletes viewed as heroes to children. Children idolize every action their favorite athlete does. They try to copy them. Here lately there have been numerous athletes suspended for unsportsmanlike conduct. They are suspended for fighting, drugs, alcohol, and other stupid actions. Most of the actions are talked about openly on television for children to see. Children want to copy the athletes, so they watch every little move made by the athlete. How can today’s athletes be stopped from acting in an unsportsmanlike way in front of today’s youth?

Professional athletes are idols to many fans all over the world. There are children everywhere wanting to be just like Terrell Owens, Barry Bonds, and Carmelo Anthony. These players are some of the few who have terrible conduct on the court or on the field. Children see their actions and want to do the things that these professional athletes do, so they can be just like their heroes. When children see Carmelo Anthony fight on the court, they are going to fight on the court as well. Children think it is cool, because Carmelo Anthony did it. Barry Bonds’ conduct for baseball is very misleading. He takes steroids to help him bat better. This teaches children that they need to take illegal drugs to be better baseball players. Terrell Owens talks very degrading to people on television, and he curses people. This behavior makes children think that it is okay to use this type of

Snell 2

language. The problem is that professional athletes are allowed to act in an unsportsmanlike manner, and the penalties for this conduct are minimal.

Professional athletes should have a behavior policy in their contracts. When signing the contract,