Jake Thompson | Keynote Speaker

NYT has a new piece on the Hyrox debacle, “our sick relationship to competition” and “how ugly sports culture has become.” The piece overlooks all the benefits of sports and flattens the entire experience into an “ugly culture.” This is nonsense. Sports are great. To get it out of the way: Hyrox needs some rules. There is a long history of endurance athletes peeing and pooping in races, but they are outdoors and not on shared equipment. But this isn’t an “ugly sports culture” problem. It’s a Hyrox lack of rules problem. Pushing through discomfort is a big part of what makes sports so valuable. The author argues that sports encourages a “sick relationship to competition.” In some cases, sure. There are a-hole coaches and athletes. But anyone who actually spends time in sports knows it does the opposite: sports teaches you how to win, lose, lay it on the line, make yourself vulnerable, and respect others in the arena. These are life skills. Let’s talk about kids: Youth sports has serious flaws (I’ve written about them extensively). But it also has many benefits. It keeps boys out of their basements and dark corners of the internet. It teaches girls how to be strong and confident in their bodies. It’s risking something. It’s real. It’s social. (Which is to say, it's everything the screen-based childhood is not.) Here are just a few things sports teaches us: It’s stepping into the arena. It’s seeing the humanity in all. It’s laying it on the line. It’s giving your best shot. It’s being vulnerable. It’s working together. It’s doing hard things. It’s overcoming adversity. It’s staying in the game. It’s meeting the moment. It’s gaining confidence. It’s being yourself. It’s growing. People are increasingly content to automate everything in their lives, to avoid all risk, to live in bubbles with those who look like them, think like them, earn what they earn, read what they read, believe what they believe. This is a “sick” culture. Sports offers the opposite. It bursts your little bubble. None of this is to say that sports doesn’t have problems. Of course it does! Everything has problems. But I loathe when major outlets focus exclusively on the negatives without mentioning the positives. Why not build up the coaches, athletes, and leagues doing their best to get it right? There are plenty of us, and we need the help. The broader culture is broken. People are losing their minds. There is more division and divisiveness than ever. You can automate your entire life, never confront your limits, and never make yourself vulnerable. You can worship celebrities, politicians, and streamers. You can post and gossip all day. Sports—when done right— is a great alternative.