I was reading an article earlier
today about a basketball player in some small town in Michigan who has Cerebral
Palsy. He just finished his junior season in which he tallied 11 points over
the course of the season. The problem with the boy is that he is 18 and will
turn 19 before September 2012, which means that by MHSA rules he is ineligible
to participate in athletics during his senior year.
Currently
there are many people that are pushing to make an exception or change the MHSA
regulations for this boy because he started school late due to his handicap. At
first I was enraged that a boy could be denied the opportunity to play
competitive basketball for the last time in his life. He has been given a
special opportunity to compete at his highest possible level and he has
succeeded. It is sad to hear that his career will have to end before his high
school career ends because of a state rule.
I
have been thinking about the story since I read it though, and I have found
myself siding with MHSA. I understand that this boy has overcome overwhelming
odds to fight cerebral palsy and still make his high school varsity team, but
does that mean that he should have the rules bent for him? I understand that
there are many other states with exceptions written into their rules regarding
age and are successful with it, but this is a rule that should have no
exceptions.
First
off I think that if exceptions are written in to the rules it opens up so much
room for cheating and controversy. We know that somewhere some kid will have
some minute handicap will be held back because he is a superstar and will have
an extra year to dominate high school sports. No matter how hard the MHSA would
try to cover their backs with the rules, someone would find a way to sneak
around the gray regulations. When the regulations are black and white, they are
not only fair but they also leave no room for interpretation and walking the
line of right or wrong.
Also,
it has been seen through the civil rights movement, the feminist movement, and
now the movements of handicaps to gain equal rights within education and the
workplace. So, first of all, why should someone with a handicap be given the
unfair advantage to play when above the age limit? Doesn’t that put handicap
students at an unfair advantage over the rest of us?
I
don’t want to sound cold-hearted because I do feel really sorry for the kid and
he is an inspiration to me and probably everyone else that has heard his story.
This being said, I don’t feel more sorry for him than I do any of the other 19
year old high school seniors that are ineligible for high school sports. My
heart breaks for every athlete who finds themselves in a situation where they
can no longer play the sport they love for whatever reason. Some parents chose
to start their kids at school late, and some parents are obliged to start their
kids in school late, but it both cases the kids is starting school late and
both circumstances the kids should be treated the same.
Im
trying to find a good example to compare the situation to, but this is a unique
problem occurring. That’s probably why it has struck up such a debate in small
town Michigan. I agree with fans, parents and friends that I would love this
kid to continue playing basketball on the team. I do not agree that MHSA should
bend their eligibility rules for him though. If I have a kid on my basketball
team with autism and he cant meet the 2.0 GPA requirement I wont bend the rules
for him.[1]
Though it is an unfortunate situation I am going against the very essential belief
of my being and siding with the ruling organization to say that I don’t think
this kid should be able to play next season.
Any thoughts?
[1] This is a
different situation though because I would try to work with the kid and get him
tutors to try and get that GPA up, but no matter how hard this kid tries, he
can never stay 18 years old for an extra year.
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