Should Youth Athletes Get Participation Trophies Essay

Improved Essays
Should everyone get a trophy? Youth athletes should not get participation trophies. Participation trophies are a waste of scarce funds. Receiving participation trophies discourages youth athletes and tells them that if they do not try they will still get an award. On the other hand some people believe that spending a few dollars to see a kid smile is worth it. Trophies should only be given to the youth athletes that do the best. Participation trophies are a waste of scarce funds. According to "The Great Trophy Debate" by John O'Sullivan, he says that this is a really poor use of scarce funds. In the same article it says that we spend $2000-$3000 on participation trophies.says that this is a really poor use of scarce funds. In the same article it says that we spend $2000-$3000 on participation trophies for youth athletes. Instead of spending this money on participation trophies we could be spending this money on quality coaching classes. …show more content…
Some people believe that spending a few dollars to see a kid smile is worth it and youth athletes should get a participation trophy until they go to middle school to play more competitive sports. Before youth athletes go to middle school, sports are just about learning fundamentals, team participation, and having fun. Receiving a participation award at the end of a season can spark interest in a particular sport. When kids get exited about playing a sport it can lead to years of enjoyment. In conclusion, there are pros and cons of getting participation trophies, but as I see it, kids should not get them at all. They are a waste of scarce funds and they discourage youth athletes from developing a strong work ethic. Living in a world where millennials have received participation awards for little or no effort will continue to weaken this nation. We have to work harder to instill discipline and drive to be your best in all aspects of your life not just

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    On the other hand, some parents and coaches might think that it is worth a few bucks to make their kids smile. However, instead of spending a lot of money on them, simple a thumbs up or a good job will do just fine. Trophies lose their meaning when people don't earn them. The "Trophies for All" policy does not prepare youth athletes for the real world. According to the SCOPE article, written by Lauren Tarshis, "In life, most people are not rewarding for simply doing what's required.”…

    • 645 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Corey Turner remembers collecting participation trophies from the YMCA soccer program he was involved in as a young athlete. These trophies are now sitting in a dusty box somewhere in his parent's basement. This leads him to question whether or not young athletes should receive trophies for just showing up. Corey Turner is not alone, people across the nation have debated this issue for as long as youth sports have been in existence. I believe that kids should not get trophies for participating because kids should learn life lessons from both wins and losses and participation trophies do more harm than good.…

    • 473 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Each year one coach spends two to three thousand dollars a year on participation trophies. Why are we spending all this money on participation trophies? Yes, this gives the kids a smile but after a game you can simply just give them ice cream. On the other hand, people think it is worth a few bucks to give kids a big smile. Participation trophies motivated the kids that are not good at their sports.…

    • 402 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Participation Trophys

    • 350 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In today's society, every kid that plays a sport gets a trophy for just showing up and that is not right. There is more meaning behind a trophy for a kid than what most people think. Getting a first place trophy is a better feeling than getting a participation trophy. Kids should be able to go home and celebrate their first place trophies and realize they accomplished something rather than getting a participation trophy for just being out there.…

    • 350 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    There are so many reasons why Participation Trophies should be taken out of existence here are a few reasons why. Kids and teens should not receive participation trophies for a number of reasons. For starters may cause kids to think too highly of themselves because they get a reward for participating. It also might have the complete opposite effect and make kids think too lowly of themselves.…

    • 293 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    I believe that participation rewards should not be handed out and kids should have to earn their trophies the right way, by winning. One of the big reasons children should not get these plastic trophies is because of a lack of effort. Let’s say a kid on a team never shows up to practice or training and does not contribute to their team league or club. Why should they get a trophy?…

    • 327 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Should youth sports give out participation awards absolutely . Youth athletes need to be motivated and giving out participation awards are a great way to begin. An athlete that's a teen over should not get one there no longer consider youth and now teenagers . If they have earned a trophy they should be given one . Youth athletes need to be motivated and giving out a participation trophy is a good way to begin.…

    • 375 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    How would you feel if you worked hard all season and went to every game and practice and you got the same trophy as the kid who sat bench all season? Not so good right? This is why youth athletes should not receive trophies. Trophies should be earned. On the other hand some coaches believe it is worth the extra money to put a smile on a kids face , but the extra money could be used to go to more important things , Therefore , participation trophies are not necessary.…

    • 420 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    What would our lives be like if we got a trophies for doing what we are required to do? People should not get rewarded for doing what they are suppose to do. In addition if we are going to be giving out trophies we should make them mean something. Secondly everything in life should be earned, sometimes your best is not good enough, and that should drive you to want to do better. Some sport organizations have a "Trophies for all" policy.…

    • 549 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In spite of all this many believe participation trophies are good and necessary to build self confidence. Regardless participation trophies are unnecessary. People don't get awards in "real life" for showing up, participating and "trying your best." It's completely unrealistic and should not beset as an example for youth.…

    • 570 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The majority of children participate In many extracurricular activities such as soccer, baseball, and dance. At the end of the season, every team has its annual awards night and where the star players would be recognized for their outstanding achievements. Everyone else on the team receives the “glad you tried but you aren 't good enough” trophy. Many children, including myself, fall into this category. As naive little children, many kids do not understand that this is the situation.…

    • 1486 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Some people may think without trophies kids won't be motivated to do different sports. But do we really want our kids motivated by trophies? Youth athletes should be rewarded for winning and trying their hardest, not doing what's required Youth athletes are getting trophies for just showing up. In life we don’t receive trophies for doing an average job. Youth athletes should receive trophies when they work…

    • 455 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In many youth sports, participation trophies are given to every child. Basically if the kid shows up they get a trophy even if they do nothing and put no effort into playing their game. In today’s society people give children too many trophies. When a child is given too many trophies when they do not actually earn it, it can actually lower their motivation and shield them from the realities of life. When a kid is given the same trophy as everyone else it lowers their motivation.…

    • 802 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The funds could be used to train coaches, offer scholarships or hire more staff. Participation trophies are a poor use of funds. Handing out youth participation…

    • 160 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Sports teams should always give out trophies, but those trophies should be given out to only the best players or best teams. If trophies are given out as participation awards, they lose their meaning and athletes wouldn’t give their best efforts. Athletes should have to work for a trophy instead of just showing up to receive a trophy. Trophies should be a motivational tool not something that could potentially encourage athletes to decrease their efforts. To earn a trophy, athletes should have to prepare and perform above average.…

    • 755 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays