Parents at Sports Day. Rant.

[Maza]

We had Sports Day this week. The class was divided into four teams and took part in all the usual races. One team was winning most of the events and the girls were appropriately cheering, absolutely fine, nothing wrong with a bit of healthy competition.

However, one of the dads on the winning team was yelling "oh, yes, xxx team does it again!" "Woo hoo" etc and running over to give the team high fives etc. It was totally cringey at best, but some of the other girls started to get upset by it. He was the same last year. My DD wasn't phased - thank goodness because at one point my DH had to take himself off to the toilet to get away from this attention seeking dad, so if DD had been one of the ones getting upset he wouldn't have been able to hold his tongue. One of the other mums did have a word with him as her daughter was really feeling it but it was almost at the end by then anyway. Some of the parents who were also on his team were laughing at first (ie giving him the attention he craved) but then they at least had the social intelligence to look around and see that actually it wasn't very nice for the kids in the other teams and were dropping hints at him to stop. He toned it down a bit but was still OTT.

Sports Day was organised in a carousel way, so the classes moved around the field from event to event and so they had a new member of staff each time. I am sure that if one teacher moved with the class they would have noticed what was going on and had a quiet word with him. He ruined the day for some of the girls and it was hard on their parents. Sigh, there's always one!

[shortstuff]

Oh how horrid for any other team. Maybe mention it to a member of staff so they can speak to him before the next event.

[Maza]

Oh how horrid for any other team. Maybe mention it to a member of staff so they can speak to him before the next event.

DH said that we probably should, seeing as he did the same thing last year. We don't want to sound like 'tell tales' though, lol! I guess the kids just have to learn to live with people like that.

[bunyip]

Did he win the parents' gold medal in the 'Singles Making a T1T of Yourself' event?

[Maza]

Did he win the parents' gold medal in the 'Singles Making a T1T of Yourself' event?

Haha! I think he'll get the 'lifetime contribution' award!

I'm not even that attention seeking after several glasses of wine!

[bunyip]

Poor lad shouldn't have to take all this criticism.

If he enjoys it so much, why dampen his enthusiasm?

Next year, make it official.






Appoint him as the "Parent Representative Interactively Congratulating Kids."

And ensure he wears a tracksuit top with the acronym printed in BIG LETTERS.

[Maza]

Poor lad shouldn't have to take all this criticism.

If he enjoys it so much, why dampen his enthusiasm?

Next year, make it official.






Appoint him as the "Parent Representative Interactively Congratulating Kids."

And ensure he wears a tracksuit top with the acronym printed in BIG LETTERS.

Oh fantastic! Did you come up with that one all by yourself? That's so funny!

[Mummits]

We just had our school sports day too. Some of the parents are so over-competitive it's not true. I heard one couple discussing how unfair it was that their darling didn't win his sprint (actually came last by quite a margin) since he "obviously didn't hear the whistle". Funny how the other seven did! Another boy told my youngest lad that he should beaten him by a mile as he was generally so much better than him and he couldn't think how the shock upset had happened. His parents came up and agreed. I just said to my son afterwards that none of them would get any points for being sporting and not to take any notice.

[Mouse]

There's always one. isn't there?

I feel sorry for the kids. Fancy having that as your dad

[FloraDora]

Whilst I think this fellow sounds like a real twit, I have not popular I am sure, opinions on Sports day which I think prepares children for winning and losing in life. I have a built in ethos in winning a competition - taking part is important but is a lame substitution for actually winning.
I think the twit dad was probably fine at the start ...I am firmly in the camp of competitions are about winning and should be celebrated. Whoop whoops and high five's everywhere I say ....but when the winning turns into absolutely whooping the opposition the 'British'social etiquette way should be to become quieter and acknowledge success but with a gentler ' thinking of the poor losing oppositions' way.

I understand the Twit was annoying and a prize idiot in persuing such a noisy celebration of the winning team, but I wouldn't say anything about it.....I would however wonder about the way the school assigns children to the teams, given one team dominates the winning of the races.
It's a shame twit had such an affect on an afternoons sporting event though.

[Maza]

I agree FloraDora, winning should absolutely be celebrated and no one had a problem with the girls high fiving each other and the winning team getting an extra loud cheer from their parents, but he was on another level. Hubby has just brought it up again because he can't get it out of his system, lol! Hubby is very sporty and spent a lot of time competing in various events as a child (not in our reserved little country) and I have worked at many sports days and neither of us have seen anything like him. My DD is sporty and did well so I'm not coming from a 'bitter parent' perspective. Well, she wasn't great in the skipping race but once our new skipping rope that you recommended arrives she will be - 'next steps' and all that, lol. The teams are fairly well balanced to be fair, and with the little ones a lot of it comes down to luck (not meaning to take any credit away from the winning team) - or maybe the crowd (him) really getting behind them was what made the difference. My DD was coming first in the 100 meters and then fell flat on her face. She got up and carried on and ended up coming last. She was so upset but that's life!

Mummits, I hope you and your son managed to enjoy Sports day!