Lessons from sports

[KiwiFraser]

I've just read an interesting article. It seems that only 10-15% of America's professional sportsmen grew up in cities of more than half a million people, even though half of the country's population lives in these cities. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the situation is similar in New Zealand and Australia, and certainly a survey of the current All Blacks and Silver Ferns (NZ netball team) backs this up.

The reasons cited were that in small towns there is much less structure to the sporting system, so that children often end up playing against those older than them, and so need to develop stronger skills to compensate for their lack of size, strength and speed. They are less likely to be lost in the system, and facilities are less likely to be booked out, giving them access to top-quality equipment.

So how does this relate to bridge? Obviously most players come from big cities, but the top young players certainly have access to the top players, probably more so in Australia than New Zealand, and get to play in all the major national events that time and budget will allow. But it's also worth bearing in mind that you don't have to start at 14 to become an expert - Zia didn't start until his mid-20's, for example. I'm not sure that the support is in place for older players who are coming through - though how many would with more encouragement is a moot point.

So I guess in this sense the bridge scene in Australia is pretty healthy for allowing young players through the system (New Zealand's administrators, IMHO, doing little to help). Does anyone have any further comments?

[mrdct]

The reasons cited were that in small towns there is much less structure to the sporting system, so that children often end up playing against those older than them, and so need to develop stronger skills to compensate for their lack of size, strength and speed. They are less likely to be lost in the system, and facilities are less likely to be booked out, giving them access to top-quality equipment.
This is kind of different to my personal experience of moving from Melbourne (3,500,000) to Echuca-Moama (15,000). The biggest difference I found in the country is that just about every kid plays organised sport and the sporting clubs have huge community support and parent involvement which leads to outstanding sporting facilities and an endless supply of decent and committed coaches.

Bridge hasn't quite caught on here yet, but Rob Fruewirth and I are quite keen on getting a bridge in schools programme going in the near future with a view to having Victoria field an all-Echuca youth team in a few years time!