Reference is usually made to a famous quote attributed to Charles Barkley in a heavily criticized Nike ad in1993 in which he said, "I am not a role model. I'm not paid to be a role model. I'm paid to wreak havoc on the basketball court. Parents should be role models. gucci sunglasses for men , Just because I dunk a basketball, doesn't mean I should raise your kids" (Land 2010)
The reason this ad created such a furor is that athletes are the subject of adoration for many young people. They are revered and worshiped by both young and old people alike. In ancient Rome, gladiators were accorded the same adoration despite the gory nature of the sport they partook. authentic designer sunglasses , It thus follows that despite the moral attributes of the athlete under consideration, they always manage to garner ardent followers who hang on their every word. Morals come as a distant consideration, if considered at all, when people are choosing a sporting figure to emulate, or just adore. This paper seeks to explore whether athletes are role models, and if so, whether they are good role models or bad role models.
A Role Model
A role model is someone who we would like to emulate in behavior as regards to a certain role (Junkere 2009). Young people are very impressionable and any figure they choose to emulate makes a big impact on their lives. A study conducted by Association of Teachers and Lecturers found that sports stars make 59. 5% of the people that school-going children would like to emulate (ATL 2008). There is no shortage of people who adore and emulate sports personalities. men gucci sunglasses , The question that is open for debate is whether any of these athletes are worth emulating, on and off the field.Debate on Athletes as Role Models
In 1936 Nazi Germany, the Summer Olympics was underway in Berlin. The then German Chancellor, Adolf Hitler, was a man of strong convictions, most of which had heavy racial undertones. It was his expectation that his 'superior alien race' would scoop all the medals in the Olympics so that he could use the outcome of the Olympics to fuel his propaganda of an 'alien race'. Amid all this racial bigotry was a black American athlete named Jesse Owens. Against a backdrop of negative expectations on his performance by the host nation, he went on to win four gold medals and put the Nazis in their place (Demand Media 2010). ? He lived a seemingly virtuous public life and when he died in 1980 of lung cancer complications, the then US president Carter hailed him as having shown unparalleled human struggle against poverty, Tyranny and racial bigotry in a career dedicated to helping others (CMG Worldwide 2010).Tiger Woods has also been hailed as an exceptional athlete. He has won 14 professional golf championships, is the second highest ranking male player, and has at one time held the position of 'World No. 1'. He is hailed as been the greatest finisher in sports history and praised for his tenacity (Celizic 2006).
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