Nader Calls For Sports and Physical Education For All Students
League of Fans Says Childhood Obesity Epidemic Demands That Schools Shift Focus From Varsity Athletics to Sports and Physical Activity Opportunities for the Entire Student Body
Ralph Nader announced today that his League of Fans organization is beginning a push for more quality physical education and intramural sports programs in the nation’s school system in an effort to combat the increasingly sedentary lifestyles of our nation’s children. The announcement came in conjunction with the release of the League of Fans’ fourth report, Sports for All Students, from its Sports Manifesto.
“It’s mind-boggling that at a time when overweight and obesity levels are up among our young people and physical activity levels are down, our schools are cutting physical education classes and intramural sports programs,” said Nader. “Pressures driven by the No Child Left Behind legislation have led to cutbacks in physical education despite research that shows students receiving daily physical education are not only healthier but perform better academically as well. We need a concerted effort to increase quality, fitness-based daily physical education classes, along with a return to the vibrant intramural sports programs our schools once offered.”
Ken Reed, League of Fans’ sports policy director and author of the organization’s Sports Manifesto, said the country must reexamine its priorities when it comes to varsity athletics, physical education, and intramural sports programs.
“As a country, we need to take another look at our emphasis on varsity athletics in schools,” said Reed. “During a growing childhood obesity epidemic that’s negatively impacting the health of our young people, do we really want to prioritize varsity athletics over physical education and intramural programs that positively impact all students? Varsity sports programs should be a secondary consideration in schools that exist for educational — not sports entertainment — purposes.”
Reed also stressed the importance of the lifetime participation model of sports and physical activity vs. the sports spectator model that is so prevalent in the United States.
“As a whole, we’re one of the worst countries in the world in terms of lifelong sports participation,” said Reed. “A small percentage of us play the games and the rest of us watch. The problem starts early. By the time boys and girls reach the age of 13, most are done with sports participation. Increasing the number of quality physical education and intramural sports programs in our schools would help to effectively address this issue.”
“The need for quality physical education has never been greater in this country,” said Brenda VanLengen, vice chair of the Board of Directors of PE4life, a nonprofit that is dedicated to increasing access to quality physical education. “We can’t afford to lose another generation of children to sedentary lifestyles. Research has shown that fit kids are healthier, and as a result, are likely to have improved learning readiness and behavior. We are excited about League of Fans’ efforts in this area.”
Sports Forum Podcast
Episode #30 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: The State of College Athletics with Dr. David Ridpath: Problems and Potential Solutions – Ridpath is a sports administration professor at Ohio University and a long-time member of The Drake Group, a college sports reform think tank.
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Episode #29 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: The Honorable Tom McMillen Visits League of Fans’ Sports Forum – McMillen is a former All-American basketball player, Olympian, Rhodes Scholar and U.S. Congressman. We discuss the state of college athletics today.
Episode #28 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: A Chat With Mano Watsa, a Leading Basketball and Life Educator – Watsa is President of PGC Basketball, the largest education basketball camp in the world. We discuss problems in youth sports today.
Episode #27 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Kids’ Sports: How We Can Take Back the Game and Restore Quality Family Time In the Process – Linda Flanagan is author of “Take Back the Game: How Money and Mania Are Ruining Kids’ Sports and Why It Matters.” We discuss how commercialized and professionalized youth sports are hurting kids and their families.
Episode #26 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: How Can We Fix Youth Sports? – John O’Sullivan is Founder and CEO of Changing the Game Project and author of “Changing the Game: The Parents Guide to Raising Happy, High Performing Athletes and Giving Youth Sports Back to Our Kids.”
Episode #25 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Physical Education Should Be a Critical Component of K-12 School Design – Michael Horn is co-founder of the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation.
Media
"How We Can Save Sports" author Ken Reed appears on Fox & Friends to explain how there's "too much adult in youth sports."
Ken Reed appears on Mornings with Gail from KFKA Radio in Colorado to discuss bad parenting in youth athletics.
“Should College Athletes Be Paid?” Ken Reed on The Morning Show from Wisconsin Public Radio
Ken Reed appears on KGNU Community Radio in Colorado (at 02:30) to discuss equality in sports and Title IX.
Ken Reed appears on the Ralph Nader Radio Hour (at 38:35) to discuss his book The Sports Reformers: Working to Make the World of Sports a Better Place, and to talk about some current sports issues.
- Reed Appears on Ralph Nader Radio Hour League of Fans’ sports policy director, Ken Reed, Ralph Nader and the New York Times’ Tyler Kepner discussed a variety of sports issues on Nader’s radio show as well as Reed’s updated book, How We Can Save Sports: A Game Plan. Reed's book was released in paperback in February, and has a new introduction and several updated sections.
League of Fans is a sports reform project founded by Ralph Nader to fight for the higher principles of justice, fair play, equal opportunity and civil rights in sports; and to encourage safety and civic responsibility in sports industry and culture.
Vanderbilt Sport & Society - On The Ball with Andrew Maraniss with guest Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director for League of Fans and author of How We Can Save Sports: A Game Plan
Sports & Torts – Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans – at the American Museum of Tort Law
Books