It is said that nobody likes a spoilsport. But sports and ethics experts as well as one Olympic gold medalist say poor sportsmanship is becoming a problem in national and international sports.
From trading dirty looks during events to over-the-top grandstanding afterward, a few — albeit rare — examples of poor sportsmanship have crept across professional and international events, including the Olympics.
A little over a week ago a match between the U.S. men's volleyball team and Italy in Athens broke down after Italy won. Players on both sides traded profanities, which were picked up by NBC's microphones and broadcast nationwide.
Such displays, experts say, leak from the television set and end up being repeated on the high school field and gymnasium.
Last week a friendly eating contest between football rivals Bingham and Hunter high schools turned into a fistfight on local television. One ethics expert says these incidents stem from a lack of good examples in sporting.
"One thing that I've always liked about the Olympics is that it's a way that people from various countries and differences can come together and peacefully compete in a nonviolent way," said David Keller, director of the Center for the Study of Ethics at Utah Valley State College.
News of U.S. running champion Maurice Greene announcing he is the "greatest of all time" before the final race, or of runner Shawn Crawford turning to casually talk to his teammate, Justin Gatlin, before crossing the finish line during a semifinal 100-meter race proves disheartening.
"These people are supposed to be a cut above everyone else in terms of behavior," Keller said. "That kind of behavior compromises the feelings of mutual respect."
Olympic gold medal speedskater Derek Parra says he has seen his share of stellar examples of sportsmanship, and not-so-stellar displays of poor attitude, during his career.
Training at the Utah Olympic Oval in Kearns, Parra took time to speak with the Deseret Morning News about what he sees as a growing problem of poor sportsmanship in professional and Olympic sports.
"When I saw last night the 100-meter sprinters I thought there're going to be thousands, or millions, of kids who are track athletes who are watching this and going to think that it's OK to do that," Parra said.
Parra said he figures some athletes lose sight of the fact that they are playing a game. "It's just a game. People are getting paid hundreds of millions of dollars for it, but it's not splitting atoms, it's not finding a cure for disease. It's just a game," he said.
But as more and more Olympic athletes make careers out of winning, getting showered with endorsements and contracts, the almighty dollar sometimes becomes all that matters, said Keith Henschen, sports psychologist for the Utah Jazz and director of the sports psychology department at the University of Utah.
Professional athletes in team sports in the United States seem to set the worst example, Henschen said. "We always seem to be doing something," he said. "We treat them like prima donnas, and they come to believe in a level of entitlement."
Parra agrees with Henschen that those athletes who make competition a career tend to take losing a little more personally. Parra, who still works at Home Depot part time, says he makes most of his money speaking to groups off the ice.
There is a big difference between being a good athlete and just being good, Parra said. It gets to the point that some people want poor sports to lose. "You don't want to be remembered like that. I wouldn't want to be remembered just as a gold medalist . . . but to be remembered as a nice guy who helped people out," he said.
One example of a gracious athlete, Parra said, is a 23-year-old Russian speedskater who is the first to congratulate fellow competitors, whether he's first or fifth.
Henschen said he feels the Olympics have become too focused on the money rather than peaceful competition. "I think that's a sad commentary," Henschen said.
After his display on the track, Justin Gatlin, who went on to win the title of world's fastest man and the Olympic gold to go with it, said he now wants to improve the image of his sport. U.S. men's volleyball team captain Lloy Ball wrote off the swearing spat between his team and the Italians as post-match emotions.
"I think one way athletes can combat this is just taking a look at themselves," Parra said. "Maybe someone should show them on tape how ridiculous they look when they're trash talking or how ridiculous they look to be running down the 100 meters chatting to each other when there are people that are next to them who are living their dream, trying 100 percent to just qualify, and these guys are playing around. There's no respect in that, I think, as an athlete."
E-mail: gfattah@desnews.com