Youth are learning lessons about sports and life from watching famous athletes on and off the field. Everything a professional athlete does is being watched, especially by children who love to copy. In 1993, Charles Barkley who retired from the Phoenix Suns produced a commercial in which he stated, “I am not a role model and just because I can dunk a basketball doesn’t mean I should raise your kids.” Players break laws, and behave poorly, but are forgiven due to their talents. Riddick Bowe, punched an opponent during a press conference, Alex Rodriguez used drugs to enhance his playing, and Colin Kaepernick did not stand for the national anthem. This is not the type of example children should be looking up too. Youths are influenced by professional
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Performance-enhancing drugs are a serious problem in professional sports. The use of drugs is basically cheating and takes the opportunity away from other players. According to studies conducted by clinical pediatricians, four to twelve percent of high school boys and three percent of high school girls have tried some form of PED. Adolescents recognize that in order for some athletes to succeed, they will go to any length, and the children will do the same. One great length is using some form of performance-enhancing drugs. These athletes are examples of exactly who young athletes want to be like. In the book Performance- Enhancing Drugs by Tom Robinson, he states, “Most young athletes can tell you that the competitive drive to win can be fierce...in such an environment using performance enhancing drugs has become increasingly common” (15). This quote clarifies how young athletes believe that if they use a PED it can help in the pursuit of their dream to get a college scholarship or a place on a professional team. Professional athletes who continually use these drugs need to be aware to the fact that younger athletes will try to follow in their footsteps. While many young athletes see performance-enhancing drugs as a way to succeed and become a professional athlete others are aspiring to be become one due to the money and
Performance-enhancing drugs are a serious problem in professional sports. The use of drugs is basically cheating and takes the opportunity away from other players. According to studies conducted by clinical pediatricians, four to twelve percent of high school boys and three percent of high school girls have tried some form of PED. Adolescents recognize that in order for some athletes to succeed, they will go to any length, and the children will do the same. One great length is using some form of performance-enhancing drugs. These athletes are examples of exactly who young athletes want to be like. In the book Performance- Enhancing Drugs by Tom Robinson, he states, “Most young athletes can tell you that the competitive drive to win can be fierce...in such an environment using performance enhancing drugs has become increasingly common” (15). This quote clarifies how young athletes believe that if they use a PED it can help in the pursuit of their dream to get a college scholarship or a place on a professional team. Professional athletes who continually use these drugs need to be aware to the fact that younger athletes will try to follow in their footsteps. While many young athletes see performance-enhancing drugs as a way to succeed and become a professional athlete others are aspiring to be become one due to the money and