Five Burning Questions to Help You and Your Kid 'Survive' Youth Sports
Steve Borelli spoke to a group of parents at St. Michael's Country Day School in Newport, Rhode Island about "Surviving Youth Sports" — and the questions they asked him are the same ones parents everywhere are wrestling with. How much pressure is too much? What do you do when your kid only wants to play one position? What if they love sports but don't want to be on a team?
These aren't edge cases. They're the everyday reality of being a sports parent — and Borelli's answers are grounded, practical, and worth reading before your next game day.
The Five Questions
1. How much pressure is it OK to apply?
Norway — one of the most decorated Olympic nations — doesn't identify elite athletes until age 13, and builds youth sports entirely around fun and friendship before that. The lesson: standards can come from the child's own interest, not from us pushing before they're ready.
2. What if kids only want to play one position?
Dreams are part of being a kid — and we shouldn't crush them. But flexibility is an advantage as athletes get older. Let them learn positional versatility while they're young, when the stakes are low and the lessons stick.
3. What if your kid loves sports but hesitates about teams?
Pickup play — the kind that used to define childhood — is still one of the best on-ramps to organized sports. The Aspen Institute's Project Play sees it as a critical bridge, especially for kids who love the game but aren't ready for the structure of a team.
4. How do we guide kids through injury and emotional strain?
Sitting out is hard. But injury is an opportunity to develop as a teammate — to support others, observe the game from a new angle, and build the kind of character that coaches remember. Being a good teammate is the most important quality youth sports can teach.
5. Why are regular check-ins so important?
Watching practice isn't the same as knowing how your kid is doing. Regular, low-pressure check-ins — not interrogations — give kids the space to share what's really going on. Sometimes they're being bullied. Sometimes they're embarrassed. Sometimes they just need to be heard.
By Steve Borelli — USA TODAY
Published May 2, 2026 · Republished with permission
Read the Full Article at USA TODAY →Stay Informed
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