To not want to raise an Olympian?

[LeytonPolo]

DS2 is almost seven, he's been on his local swim team, a summer only team since he was five. He usually comes in first or second but they're more fun races than actually competitive and the pool of competition isn't that wide iyswim.

We've been approached by a coach that works for another swim team, who saw DS swim recently and want's him to come to a trial they're having for their junior team.

The swim team is in the next town over, it's a 30 min drive, it's much bigger and much more competitive, coach said kids under 10 are expected to do training outside the pool as well as two 2 hour sessions during the week in the pool for under 8's and the amount of sessions would grow depending on the child once they turned 8.

It's also year round with only a few weeks off here and their instead of just for the summer.

Coach kept naming Olympian swimmers that had trained there at one point or another as children, I know nothing about the olympics, so this really didn't mean anything to me but it's clear that it's a very serious team who expect kids to pull their weight.

DS wants to go to the trial, DH is more excited then he is, but it honestly seems like a lot of effort & pressure for swimming.

We have 2 teens, we both work full time, I can't even imagine where we'll find the time to make sure DS trains outside the pool or what that would even entail.

I don't want to go the trial and waste everyone's time if we're just going to turn it down but I really don't think a small shot at the olympics is worth it.

If I had a child, over my dead body would I allow him/her to be trained as a professional sportsman/woman

Mine is. Although I dislike the term "professional" as it suggests they get paid as if it were employment- and competitive sport is not a job, it's a life. "Professional" to me is those working, like circus, coaches, on stage, where it's a job, not competition to competition.

I did also. I was discouraged by my parents as they were of the opinion that there is "no money in sport" and that the chances of the olympics were so slim there was no point trying.

I will always regret not pursuing it. I did end up as one of those scientist you think are so worthy, but if I had my time again I'd stick with sport. More money in sport than science too :). I loved it, it was my passion, and I would far rather have been training every day than anything else. It also gave me huge self confidence, knowing I was so much better at something. I was never bullied as I knew I could better them physically without even trying. It's the same with my child, they are confident, physically strong, and respected by their peers. They are "different" to the kids who like make up, and dating, but they are still included in social circles.

I have friends who carried on as performers once they were done competing have retired now, in their 40's, with a lot of money in the back and cushy jobs teaching or giving seminars.

Sign him up to darts. He gets to wear a nice comfy polyester shirt, a sensible pair of slacks and he can train in the comfort of his own garage. Loads of free beer, too.

You will need to devote some time to developing his gimmick and a good nickname.

And he won't get to be an Olympian.

Not until arrows gains its rightful place at the pinnacle of sporting achievement.

DoinItFine Glad to see a fellow darts enthusiast

And it really boils my piss to see that so much is made of sportspeople while people who really change the world, like scientists, aid helpers, and Nobel prize winners, for example, are completely ignored in the media.
Generally, sportspeople are young, attractive and overall far more photogenic than your average Nobel Prize winner. Also, their achievements tend to be rather more easily quantifiable: "he swims really fast!" instead of "she has spent the past twenty years developing a new strain of bacteria which could eliminate tsetse fly infestation!"

Being completely ignored by the media is a positive advantage IMO! Besides, most young people (sportspeople included) don't enter a career with the specific aim of becoming a sleb.

How about Laura Muir? She's an Olympian and training to be a vet en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laura_Muir. I can give you loads more examples- being an Olympian doesn't mean you have to give up your other goals. Some choose to do it full time if they can but others do it along side a different career. Many of the elite gymnasts now have scholarships at US universities after they retire as international gymnasts so they can use their sport to get them a good education. Diver Alicia Blagg has a scholarship for the university of Miami starting in September after Rio, she will still train for Tokyo but will get a degree too (she wants to be a detective).

It isn't necessarily one or the other some do elite sport and get a good education and career too!!

And, I do know too many useless facts about sports people. If I spent less time watching sport and more time doing it...

My reasons for not doing it would be about the coach, either he's bonkers, naming Olympians etc. etc. He obviously doesn't know anything about talent identification for swimming (6 is too young, as you don't know enough about how the development will go). He may be looking at talent selection, but that seems extremely odd at 6 when he cannot swim competitively until he's 9 in the UK.

Or probably more likely he's trying to get lots of people to pay to join his team - 'cos he's got lots of spots. Does your local pool not have a year round group?

Swimming is quite an easy sport to know how good you are - how fast can he swim 50m with his best stroke, is he actually good, or just good compared to the other fun swimming 6 year olds? But realistically, it's just too early to specialise, and not helpful, if it's a chore for the family to support the swimming you won't do it - there's lots of other things.

KiteCutter Paul Bowler is my cousin

My two boys are both talented at a sport (the same one thankfully) and it takes a huge amount of time, money and committment and they may or may not get recognised at some point in their lives. But they love it and want to do it so I will keep going until they no longer want to. Although its been 12 years now and shows no sign of slowing.

I cant imagine them having a talent and me not helping them to acheive their goals.

Why not let him have a crack if he really is keen? Chances are, once the reality hits of how much work is involved, he'll lose interest and move on. No harm done.
I was offered a good sporting opportunity as a child, and my parents weren't keen. I missed out on that chance, but it made me 100% more determined to prove them wrong and that I could do it.

"I think you are thinking about yourself."

So what? There are 5 people on the family of equal importance. They all need thinking about.

People who say "oh let him try it" are conveniently ignoring that the rest of the family may start to suffer before DS does.

OP, can you extend the current summer club which is more local to all year round? Then at least you'd have a feel for how committed he was to swimming. Also, this is not a "one off" - if he is good, he can try out another time.

He will go to bed at, what, 2030 once a week with travel time - will that be ok for him? What do you normally do weekend mornings that would be sacrificed?

In swimming, up until about 12 years old, it's almost entirely about body size. The stronger/taller kids win.

It's also a lot to do with opportunity. Those whose parents paid for private lessons, take them training etc

So, it's virtually impossible to tell who's the most talented.

If I were to pick someone at 7, who would be an Olympic athlete, it's all be about their attitude and nothing to do with their current position in a race.

But I have 3 children and all 3 have on average 1 activity a day, 6 days a week. Taking a 6 year old swimming twice a week is not going to make the other 2 dc suffer. 6 years is too young to talk about being Olympian, but it's nothing excessive either.to swim twice a week.
The only thing to suffer is your car and your money.

Once/if he starts having to swim in the mornings, THEN is the time to have the discussion as on this tread. (I would refuse early mornings as I like my bed too much and hate getting up early)

BTW, one of my other dc was asked to join the swimming club (unlike dc3, who I had to ask them if she could join). She declined as she just didn't enjoy it that much.

Sirfred, what do you mean by cant swim competitively until 9? :)

Paulat2112 You can only compete in proper competitions, as opposed to just swimming against your club-mates, from 9 I remembered, but that's actually just for opens you can invite other clubs from 8 it seems

www.swimming.org/asa/clubs-and-members/frequently-asked-questions/faq-disciplines-and-events/169/

Obviously you could have competitions outside of ASA, but I don't think there are many - and who would be insuring them?

Ah ok, we are SASA as in Scotland. DD has been competing for almost a year now and she's 7. Was just wondering if we had missed something lol, thank you for clarifying

Interesting, I actually thought Scotland was the same Paulat2112, and that it really came from FINA.

I was never bullied as I knew I could better them physically without even trying.

Not always the case. I'm sure I read that the diving guy was bullied at school and trolled after the olympics.

Everyday is a school day :) as i said, i thought i was missing something or possibly you meant a certain type of competition. There certainly isn't alot for her (altho plenty to keep her going) but when she turns 8 lots of things will open up for DD.

I was at school with someone who nearly made it to the Olympics as a swimmer- to protect their identity I will not say which one. I saw them about four years afterwards and they were a shell of the person I knew. I would never want anyone else to suffer in the way they did.

That diving guy is Tom Daley and it is said (by him) that he was bullied about his diving. Not sure how true it is as it also seems it could have been a way to get him a scholarship into a very good private school instead. So I've heard.

Do you and your husband both work full time, exampanic? When do you get any family time?

I don't think obsessive behaviour is good for anyone, especially children. I think for every obsessive olympian gushing at the camera that winning made all the immense sacrifices worthwhile there are thousands if not tens of thousands of others who made all the same sacrifices and have jack shit to show for it.

What the hell sort of ambition is best pole jumper anyway?

Not b u at all. Most elite sportspeople are so obsessed and insanely competitive they become awfully, incredibly dull. Even the brighter ones wheeled out to Do Media are boring as anything.

And that's the minuscule minority, who made it.

Cultivate the life of the mind instead. Far more rewarding - and long lasting.