Athletes thrive off of the pressure of competition. They lunge at the opportunity to compete, to prove themselves, and to be challenged. Athletes are disciplined. At a school like Bentley where academic obligations never seem to slow, this type of discipline is not a choice, it is a necessity. In order to compensate for the added time commitment of athletics, student athletes willingly give up things that other college students seem to take for granted. They forgo partying, free time, and most importantly, the leisure time needed to nap. They do all this without hesitation, all for the chance to put on their Bentley uniform and represent the blue and black. Since March of 2020, all of this has changed.
Athletes are continuously told that gameplay will resume ‘when it is safe’ or after the Covid situation is ‘under control.’ While the upmost priority of the school should continue to be the safety of the students, it does not make the crushing disappointment of cancelled seasons any easier to handle. The prospect of game days is what motivates athletes to surge onward, to finish out that last sprint, or to hustle everyday at practice. For most athletes, competition is the driving force behind the motivation to be the best athlete they can be. The uncertainty of athletics makes the future seem very bleak for those whose lives are so deeply affected by sports.
As a freshman student athlete on the field hockey team, I often think about the fact how it has been over 460 days since I have played my last official game. I’ve yet to be able to compete at the college level. One might even say that currently, I am nothing more than a washed-up athlete riding the high of my high school athletics career. Despite the challenges of not being able to compete, I try and remain hopeful about future seasons. I remind myself that I am lucky to only be a freshman and therefore have 3 more years left to compete.
With each passing day that goes by without ‘normal’ sports, I am reminded of how big a role athletics have played in my life. Since starting youth lacrosse at age 4, I have never not been involved in athletics. As a three-sport high school athlete, I often found that the 2 week breaks between sport seasons were among the most boring in the entire year. During these short breaks between seasons, I felt restless, as if something were missing. I craved the feeling of camaraderie between teammates, having an outlet from stress, and the physical exertion that caused me to collapse into bed every night.
Without competitive athletics, I feel as though, well, my mental and physical health atrophies. I look forward to the day that competitive athletics will once again be considered a normal part of life.