Have you ever given thought to why good athletes get suspended or get banned from playing their sports disciplines? When joining a sport disciplinary, the first thing that is required from you as an athlete is Self-discipline. Discipline is the essential foundation for any sport because it builds an athlete’s character to help them focus and attain the ability to work towards archiving their targets without any distractions. Beyond sports, discipline is also instrumental to succeeding in other areas of life.
No matter what sports you play, be it basketball, soccer, volleyball, or even gymnastics, you will come to realise that discipline is one of the most essential keys to succeeding as an athlete.
At Gaborone International School we believe that participating in sports early in life also creates a lifelong sense of discipline in children. Coaches in particular, play an important role in instilling discipline in young athletes. Coaches should be aware of this responsibility, and show their athletes the benefits they can get from being disciplined. Moreover, discipline isn’t about age and the particular stage of life you started participating in sports, it can be developed by everyone who is dedicated and willing to adopt its characteristics.
Every sport has formed associations that have come up with rules and regulations that are used to monitor athletes and sport bodies, and those rules must be followed without fail. These set rules are to ensure fairness and consistency for all participating athletes. We have seen countless dreams of athletes being crushed and swooped away like they never existed. Some of these athletes were dropped because off illegal drugs, fighting, and absenteeism during competitions and training, use of vulgar language, etc.
If you ask any successful athlete about their road to success, the first thing they’ll say is, ‘discipline’ and how it has worked and paved the road for them to be where they are right now. Rightly so, discipline is an essential foundation for any sport. So when one decides to join/play any sport, they should come with a prepared mindset to accommodate discipline in their lives. This is clearly the root to being a successful athlete!
