….An Emotional Sports Parent

Yesterday, my girls raced in the ACT schools cross country championships. In my last post I wrote about how we were all  feeling excited and anxious about the day…..but I could never have predicted what was going to happen…..

On that post, a lovely Mom from Fly Like A Girl, who I have connected with through blogging, left a thoughtful comment. She said that there was a difference between a crazy sports parent and an emotional one. Well, today, I’m an emotional one….

The girls, excited before the races

The day started with nervous anticipation. My 7 year old daughter, Muscles, took to the starting line of her race. The course was blanketed in a think layer of fog, which gave an eerie atmosphere to the race. I stood at the apex of the first corner to watch the girls disappear into the fog…with my little girl firmly in the lead as they ran out of site.

Muscles in the lead........

I rushed down to the finishing straight full of excitement to watch the final part of the race. As I stood with my family, we strained our necks to get a glimpse of the girls and we couldn’t see Muscles. . As the girls turned into the finishing straight there was still no sign of my little girl.

My heart sank because for weeks, I had been reassuring her about the race and telling her that she would be fine….I knew how much this race meant to her. I thought that she must have run too hard at the start and was too exhausted to maintain the pace. I new that she would be upset.

We waited at the line, still searching for a glimpse of my girl…the last stragglers finished and still there was no sign of her.

Now my heart was pounding! What had happened???

I went straight to the marshalling tent to find one of our lovely teachers was already making enquiries. Finally (at least it felt like forever, but was probably just a minute), a call came in from one of the course marshals requesting first aid for a injured girl.

So, off I went…running that cross country course myself to find my daughter.

It turned out that she had fallen and badly injured her ankle. I carried her back…while she cried and shook from the pain and the disappointment, and the relief from seeing me.  It also turned out that there was no first aid at the course….Luckily, our school had brought a first aid kit so at least we had some ice and bandages to help ease the swelling.

Little Buster was very concerned for his big sister...

Today we are off to see the sports doctors to see what the damage is. Her ankle is very swollen and bruised! She is devastated that she can’t do her gymnastics training with her major competitions coming up. Last night the poor little thing cried herself to sleep…

….Back at the cross country carnival my oldest daughter, Flash (9) ran 4^th in her race….to be completely honest, I don't think her heart was really in it.

So today I am an emotional sports parent. I haven’t quite got my thoughts straight yet. I know that injuries are a part of sport…I know that she'll probably be fine in a few weeks.....but it is so hard to see my child go though that...It was a tough day at the office for this mum.

linking up with Diary of a SAHM for #IBOT (I blog on Tuesdays)

Proud to be a Sports Parent

Well, tomorrow the Sporty Girls will be racing in the ACT schools cross country championships ( if the weather holds out).

The girls are nervous and excited…and so is their mum!

I understand that you may be wondering what I have to be nervous and excited about. It is true that it is not me racing…it’s my daughters. But nervous excitement is what I am feeling.

I could do the ‘done thing’ here and  complain about the wind messing up my hair, making my latte cold or getting mud on my fashionable Italian leather boots….but that is not me, and not how I feel. Thanks to the east coast low it will undoubtedly be cold, windy and probably raining. But I will be there supporting my girls….and enjoying it!

I have been thinking about why I feel this way before my children’s races…..

It’s not because I am living my dreams through my children. I had a very fulfilling and exciting childhood with my own successes and failures…which I am content with. I never even entertained the notion of competing at the state-championships in sport.

It’s not because I base by self-worth on the success of my children. Off course I want them to be happy, but I am also happy with the achievements I have made in my own life, and the achievements I have yet to make. I do not need the success of my children to make me feel worthy!

Am I emotionally invested in the girls events? Of course I am. I am their mum…Their biggest supporter. I have friends who are staunch supports of football clubs and I know they feel emotionally invested, nervous and excited before he games too.

I also felt this way when the girls were performing in the school Christmas concert or when my daughter sat her NAPLAN, or when my daughter had a suspected appendicitis…so it’s not just sports that make me feel nervous for the kids,

I have read so many negative things about youth sports parents on the internet. From people claiming youth sports brings out the worst in adults to parents being the worst part about youth sport. I am not naive enough to think that youth sport is all butterflies and rainbows, but I know a lot of parents involved with  children’s sport. By a far majority these parents are supportive and sensible.

I have seen  crazy sports parents, but I think it is unfair that all parents of kids involved in or excelling at sport are tarred with the same brush.

Don’t worry, I have some perspective too. I realise that  the girls are not ‘racing for Sheep Stations’ tomorrow. A brave little girl in my daughters class is in the grip of a life and death battle against rare cancer called neuroblastoma. I can only imagine the fear and anxiety that her family is going through. I know that they are doing everything they can to save her life and they are truly inspirational.

I know that tomorrow is just another race. I also know that this cross country race is very important to my girls and they will be giving it all they have……

So I have reached the point where I no longer feel embarrassed to admit feeling excited and nervous before my kids sporting events. I will love them just the same no matter what the result. I will be there to cheer them on for as long as they want to continue. I will share the successes and disappointments with them. I will be waiting at the finish line to hold them, and congratulate them……. because I am their Mum…

Active Kids Weekend: ACT Zone Cross Country

Previously I have written about how my girls Flash (9) and Muscles (7) qualified to compete for their school at the zone (district) cross-country carnival.

The zone carnival was held at a beautiful, and purpose built cross country running track called Stromlo Forest Park….There is quite an interesting history to this running track. It was designed by the Australian Marathon Champion, Robert De Castella (‘Deek’), After the Canberra bushfires in 2003 ( the year flash was born). The fire  destroyed over 500 homes and took four lives. Deek’s house was one of those destroyed in the fire.

Previously, Stromlo forest park was covered in majestic pine trees and reminded me of a scene from a Canadian tourism brochure. It was a glorious location for walking, running and mountain biking. After the fires, a group of us mountain bike riders tried to ride on our old trail. I will never forget what I saw….the devastation was absolutely mind-blowing…it was a grey luna-liker landscape as the forest had been razed to the ground by the horrific fire-storm.

Flash’s race was first. She and her two team mates lined up nervously at the start with the other girls and were off and running. Flash hit the bottom of the hill loop in about 3^rd place as the pack ran out of sight.

….As a mum, these events are hard to watch…my heart is in my throat and my hands shake so that it’s difficult for my poor little camera to focus…..

Straining my neck, I managed to catch a few glimpses of that tell tale red pony-tail in the lead around the back of the course. Flash came into the finishing straight in the lead and even managed to find her way (she actually started running in the wrong direction) to the finishing line in first place! Flash’s teammate was in 3^rd place too!! Flash had won her zone!

After a nervous wait, it was muscles turn…Muscles displayed a brave smile as her teacher led my baby girl to the start line of her first zone cross-country. The younger age groups treat the cross country like an extended sprint event and the pack took off like a rocket….

my little one reached the bend in first place as they ran out of site. I was wondering if she would last the distance!

Muscles reached the final turn in the lead and we could see by the look on her face that she was giving it everything she had! Muscles reached the finishing line in first place! 

 With wobbly legs and a red face she fell into my arms as she tried desperately to get her breath back…This was another moment I’ll never forget as we stood still together, mother supporting her daughter, amidst the moving crown of spectators.

I carried my little girl back to our school tent and you should have seen the look on her face….the look she gave us when we told her that her prize for winning, was to do the race AGAIN next month for the ACT School Championships…I thought she might have been about to cry….

…but now, she and Flash are counting down the days until the ACT cross country carnival next month…

One of the aims I have for this SportyMummy blog is to create a community of parents interested in sport and a healthy lifestyle for their children.

If your kids have participated in a sport or a fun energetic activity this week, I'd love to hear about it in the comments. You can also comment on the SportyMummy Facebook page. If you have written a blog post about a sport or activity your children have participated in this week, you can add it to the linky tool at the end of this post. It is my hope to create a supportive community that will also motivate others to get involved with an active lifestyle.