Sports Culture and not Winners Culture

THIS COLUMN has over time, lamented the absence of a defining sports culture for St Vincent and the Grenadines. In fact, this exposition dare say that we do not possess one.

Yes, somehow, we have not grasped the magnitude of sports to national development and social cohesion of the country.

What then pervades are reactions to good performances, promises, highlights and that short burst of national spotlight.

On the contrary, there are constant criticisms of our national sportsmen and women when they fail to get past their opponents at regional and international events.

Much of the latter is based on ignorance of sports, hyped emotions and comparisons with others in the region. However, if sports were placed on the front burner of the national discourse or the centrality of the country’s development, then a large chunk of the Vincentian population would be in the know.

So, we are left with piece meal approaches towards developing a cadre of sportsmen and women that would excel enough to perform beyond the ordinary.

That is the crux of the matter why we are where we are in sports. From the ground up, sports is a pastime, a form of recreation, never a vehicle that is fully utilized as a conduit for national transformation.

Unfortunately, this unwanted phenomenon is deep rooted from the community level, all they way up to the political directorate, whose mere actions epitomizes a hapless state of affairs. It is only on occasions when someone or a representative team does well that they find themselves at the airport to welcome them, or use their privileges in parliament to pay homage to the achievers.

Thereafter, the one -day hall- of- famers are required to fadge on their own, until the next cycle of lauding and political pawn time usage comes around.

Getting a change in psyche will not be had from waving a magic wand, as things have persisted for an inordinate amount of time, dooming the prospects for a reversal.

First and foremost, there has to be a revolution in thinking from the policy makers, who in their seated positions of clout, have to be the designers and choreographers of the reshaped mentality.

Hence, as early as the pre- school level, sports has to become engrained as a cultural undertaking, thereby laying that ground work and foundation to build on.

Once entrenched, the community then solidifies the process, by creating that love and passion for sports.

But nothing is more binding than a documented  policy aimed at placing emphasis on sports and its derivatives.

The perceived sports culture will become a way of life for Vincentians, allowing for that natural pull and commitment to the cause.

Sports has too much to offer and less to lose, as it transcends and impacts every sector of our society.

Its built-in discipline is a natural platform for an ordered society, a healthier nation, immersed in pride of self and country. Not a far-fetched reality, but one that requires a change in the mind set of all.