Sportsmanship Dilemma In Our Culture

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In the following article, Chase defends Peyton Manning’s behavior after his Super Bowl loss.

Peyton Manning storms off Super Bowl field. Is he a poor sport?
By Chris Chase

Peyton Manning didn't shake hands with New Orleans Saints players after his Indianapolis Colts lost 31-17 in Super Bowl XLIV. Apparently some think this is a sign of poor sportsmanship from the NFL's greatest player. It's not.

Walking off the field without congratulating Drew Brees may go against our misguided notion of what sportsmanship should be, but it wasn't at all disrespectful or bitter. It shows how much Peyton Manning wanted to win the game. And who can argue about that?

LeBron James was caught up in a similar controversy during the NBA playoffs last year and the same thing that was true then is true now: A perfunctory handshake doesn't make someone a good sport. It either makes them indifferent to the game's result or a good actor. What would people have preferred Peyton and LeBron do, laugh off the loss with apathy and treat the victors to dinner after? This isn't Little League.

The only time I question my sports fandom is when the players I'm rooting for seem to care less about the result than I do. I don't want to see my team's quarterback laughing on the sideline while losing a big game. If I care so much, why shouldn't the players?

"It's just a job for these guys," is a familiar refrain. The natural response to that is the great ones make their job their passion. Hall of Famers don't tend to include guys who can't care. The desire to win is what sustains greatness. You think Michael Jordan was hugging Isiah Thomas after losses in the 1980s? Or that Larry Bird stayed on the court to congratulate Kareem? Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio weren't going out for drinks after the Yankees beat the Red Sox. The great ones are competitors and competitors can't flip a switch immediately after a devastating loss and act like it didn't matter.

I can’t believe the ridiculous “logic” Chase uses to defend poor sportsmanship. He says Manning’s walking off the field without shaking hands with Drew Brees “shows how much Peyton Manning wanted to win the game”! You’ve got to be kidding! According to that “logic,” any form of poor sportsmanship would just show how much someone wanted to win.

Chase claims “a perfunctory handshake … either makes them [the losing player] indifferent to the game’s result or a good actor.” Unbelievable!

“The great ones are competitors and competitors can't flip a switch immediately after a devastating loss and act like it didn't matter.” That’s true, but the truly great ones should be able to handle themselves with CLASS and DIGNITY. No one expects the losing team to “laugh off the loss with apathy,” but we SHOULD expect EVERY athlete to act like a mature adult and not a spoiled child.

And to say someone who is respectful and shakes hands after losing a championship doesn’t really care if he lost is absolutely LUDICROUS!

To make excuses for poor sportsmanship is pathetic. Unfortunately we no longer expect our professional athletes to put forth the effort to act like decent role models for the millions of impressionable youth that are watching them.

I participated in amateur sports my whole life and was fortunate to play in many championships. I never played in any championship where the competitors didn’t want to DESPERATELY win. But there can be only one winner, and someone has to lose. And it’s the responsibly of the winner AND the loser to act like a decent person after the competition is over.

How athletes act can be remembered long after the win or loss is forgotten.

I judge an athlete’s character more by the way he handles himself after losing than after he wins. It is EASY to be a good winner! What is tough is how you handle yourself in defeat!
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