Fred Bowen's "The Score" column,
March 26, 2009, Washington Post

Athletes' Big Celebrations Cross the Line

Washington Capitals superstar left wing, Alex Ovechkin, got into trouble last week for scoring his 50th goal of the season. The reason is what Ovechkin did after he scored the goal.

He placed his hockey stick on the ice and put his gloves over the stick as if he was warming his hands. In other words, Ovechkin was telling everyone that he is such a great goal-scorer that his stick is red-hot.

Some people, including members of the Tampa Bay Lightning, which lost that night to the Capitals, 5-2, thought Ovechkin was being a bad sport. That kind of showing off is not usually done in the National Hockey League.

These days, however, there are lots of showoffs in sports. In football, wide receivers sometimes celebrate so much after scoring a touchdown that they are penalized for "excessive celebration." Even defensive linemen start dancing whenever they sack the quarterback.

Basketball players pound their chests, pop their jerseys and scream after almost every slam dunk. Soccer stars skid along the grass and even take off their shirts after they score. Baseball sluggers stand at the plate and admire their long home runs instead of running the bases.

So maybe with all this celebrating and showing off, what Ovechkin did wasn't so bad. I'm not so sure.

I wouldn't mind what Ovechkin did except for one thing: It sets a bad example. Kids see their favorite sports stars celebrating and acting like bad sports and the kids want to do the same thing in their games.

But professional sports are different from kids' sports. Professional, and even big-time college, sports are mostly entertainment. Showing emotion during the game and celebrating touchdowns and goals can be part of the fun and excitement.

Kids' sports are not entertainment. Kids should play sports to improve their skills, learn how to compete and have fun. If kids show off after they score or make a good play, that doesn't help them improve or have fun.

All the showing off and celebrating in sports remind me of what the teachers at my local elementary school (and probably other schools) call "one-way fun." That is when a kid is teasing or playing a joke on another kid. The kid who is doing the teasing may be having fun, but the kid who is the butt of the joke usually feels bad.

I think Ovechkin is a terrific hockey player. He has scored 50 or more goals in three of his first four seasons in the NHL. He doesn't have to be a showoff to prove he's a special player. Maybe Ovechkin should think less about being a great entertainer and more about being a good example.

Fred Bowen writes KidsPost's sports opinion column and is an author of sports novels for kids.

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