Local Youth League Celebrates Sportsmanship

Youth sports are, on paper, an unalloyed good. They teach accountability and teamwork, strengthen the association between work and reward and build self-confidence in their inchoate participants. And everybody gets orange slices afterwards.

As the headlines scream though parents punching coaches, coaches punching parents, parents punching officials, et. al, these last few years the institution has lost its way. But Josh Askin is offering Norristown kids and their parents an antidote to the madness.

Askin is the East Montgomery County operator of i9 Sports, an organization that offers area families a laid-back, congenial alternative to overly competitive youth athletic leagues. The emphasis at i9, Askin says unironically, is not on whether you win or lose, but how you play the game.

"Lots of times kids quit sports for a variety of reasons. They're not good enough. They're not getting enough playing time. [That's because] the focus is on the wrong thing. It's not about going pro or getting a college scholarship. It's about sportsmanship and having fun," he explained.

Pee-wee sports, he adds, are plagued by an overabundance of this seriousness. The prevailing "cutthroat" attitude discourages many kids from playing at all and diminishes the experience of those that do.

i9 Sports, which offers soccer, flag football, cheerleading and other sports for kids aged three to 14 and has 350 participants in Montgomery County, combats this by emphasizing civility and sportsmanship as well as bunts and base running.

"We teach a sportsmanship topic during practice every week and at the end of each game, win, lose or draw, somebody gets an award [for demonstrating] that."

Parents aren't exempt either. When they register their kids, i9 has them sign a contract agreeing not to criticize coaches, officials or other parents during games.

"They can yell all they want as long as it's positive," adds Askin. "If you come to the games you'll see positive cheering."

Positive isn't always boring either.

On April 15, i9 parents will be cheering positively in the Wells Fargo Center, where their flag football team will play an exhibition game before the Philadelphia Soul take on the Tampa Bay Storm.

"I wrote [the Soul] a letter telling them about what we were doing and they got back to me immediately," said Askin.

Professional football being notorious for its sportsmanship, the 2008 Arena League champs took an interest in the program. Not only will the i9 kids open up for them, they and their families are invited to stick around and watch the game afterwards. A few lucky i9ers will greet the Soul as they run through the tunnel and onto the field.

"I think [i9] is a phenomenal concept," said Soul COO John Adams. "And that's what makes it a good fit for us. We're on the professional level, so we're about wins and losses, but the way to get there is to work on fundamentals."

This Spring, i9 sports of East Montgomery County will offer flag football, soccer, and instructional soccer. The registration deadline is Feb. 28. To sign-up, or for other information on i9, visit their website.