Moving Forward: How track and field can make the world a little better in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombing

By Stephen "SteveU" Underwood

For nearly two days, I read what my peers and other scribes have contributed to the conversation about the Boston Marathon bombings and the aftermath.  On Facebook, there have been countless comments, slogans, tributes, inspirational memes and other contributions from my friends and “liked” media – mourning and honoring the victims, saluting the heroic responders, and pumping up the resilient nature of Bostonians and marathoners alike. 

And I wondered why I hadn’t been moved yet to add much of anything, but instead just felt numb.  If I could contribute something, what would it be?

Then I recalled my reactions to other incidents that have terrorized us, from 9/11 on a large scale to the more recent Aurora and Newtown shootings on a more localized scale.  And I realized my reaction is usually thinking beyond the specific incident.  It’s something like this: How can we help create a world where there are fewer and fewer groups and individuals who are negatively inspired to commit acts of terror? How can humanity evolve so people, groups and nations seek to work, play and live together, overcoming whatever differences we may have, instead of hating, killing and destroying?

It’s the big picture; how can we actually move forward, instead of recovering from one incident and waiting, resigned, until the next?  Getting to the very roots of things like this seems so overwhelming, with the massive human historical and current state of national and international conflicts of race, religion, politics, ideology, and so much more.  But I believe actions like the bombings will keep happening until we do somehow get to those roots.  As simple and naive as it might sound, what can we actually do to seriously make this aspect of our world better?

I thought a lot about our sport, up to the highest level.  In the Olympics, of course, there’s a history of groups and individuals making violent statements.  Folks my age and older will never forget Munich in 1972, as 11 Olympians were killed by a terrorist group.  And many more of us remember the Centennial Park bombing at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996, which killed one and injured 111 others.

But of course we know that however cynical we might get, there is still an Olympic spirit of international goodwill that we can see occasionally on a large scale, but more often in more personal acts that demonstrate respect and good-heartedness between foes from vastly different cultures and backgrounds.

More specifically for track and field, we can see that international goodwill at IAAF championship events, which are usually not rife with the politics of the Olympic Games.  Having watched these from afar since the 1980s, and having been to one World Youth and one World Junior championship, I can attest to the positive impact of these events on the type of spirit needed in humanity to “make things better.”

But relatively few will ever compete in or even attend an Olympics or international championship – so what can the rest of us do?  Well, that’s the great thing about track and field.  By its very nature, it’s all about diversity – and embracing diversity is part of getting humanity moving in a better direction.

Track and field embraces diversity on two levels, in my view.  First, there’s the simple fact of so many different disciplines to get involved in.  If you’re quick, you can do the short sprints.  If you’re fast, but take a little while to get rolling, there’s the long sprints.  If you like to mix running and jumping, there’s the hurdles and steeple.  If jumping alone is your thing, there’s a quartet of vertical and horizontal options.  If you’re not too speedy, but can keep going and going, there’s the distances and the walks.  And if you’re a big guy or gal, throwing things might be your bag – and there’s several implements to get acquainted with.

Maybe you’re not great at any of those, but might want to try a little of everything?  There’s always the multis.

And the second aspect of diversity in track and field is what we started talking about earlier, regarding race and nationality, but on a localized scale.  Sure, you could say any sport can draw upon athletes of different racial and cultural backgrounds.  But there’s something about track and field that seems to truly invite people from all of those different backgrounds to find their niche and participate.

Even more reasons to love track and field as an inclusive sport: In many programs, kids never get cut and there’s always home JV or frosh/soph meets in which to participate.  And of course our sport is one where getting a personal best can often promote a great feeling of achievement, whether you win or finish back in the pack.

Ok, so most of you have known these things for a long time, that track and field has these attributes.  How can these attributes help make society better in this scenario?

They can help if we all take initiative to grow our sport in some specific ways.  That means taking more time to invite the kids who appear to be on the fringe of the school scene to get involved.  That means taking more time to invite the kids from another country or cultural background to get involved.  We know that sometimes kids who feel personally or culturally disenfranchised might be those who are inspired to do harmful things.  Getting these folks involved in track and field might lead to better lives for them and less consequences down the road.

Yes, I know this is hardly a big picture solution to the world’s terrorism problems.  But proposing those solutions will be left to those playing in those arenas, figuratively speaking.  As far as things we can do in our realm, there’s this:  If you know or see a kid or kids who need a place to be, a place to grow ... well, chances are pretty solid there’s a place for them on your track and field teams.  It might take some doing, but those of you reading this – athletes, coaches, parents and others who love the sport – are pretty good at sharing what you love with others.  I’ll bet you can win some converts.

I’d also urge those who are able to volunteer to help with local clubs and teams.  Or consider mentoring kids so they can keep their grades up, or chip in some bucks if a local club needs shoes or the track maintained, etc.  And then come out and cheer these kids in meets so they feel appreciated!

Thankfully, there are many of you out there already doing this, especially in some of our outstanding teams and clubs around the country.  You’re already finding those kids who need the sport and its diverse opportunities.  I pray you can keep doing that and even step it up a level.

And, finally, I have to give a shoutout to the organization at the top of our game, so to speak, which is also doing this on a larger scale.  The National Scholastic Athletics Foundation (NSAF) does so much to generate participation and growth in our sport, whether it’s their indoor and outdoor championships, their assisting youths and juniors to compete internationally, the opportunities for athletes in their Caribbean meet, their diverse clinics, and so much more.

They get it.  Many of the rest of you get it.  So let’s continue to spread the love in this sport and champion the healthy benefits derived from it – and make an extra effort to reach out to those who might need it the most.