We were a reunited family this Christmas, thanks to my brother’s long trek from the opposite side of the globe to be with us again over the holiday season. We’ve since hit the grindstone again in our respective countries, but among the gifts he generously left behind was a nifty little gadget I made full use of last week. When attached to the back of the TV, it essentially turns the system into a smart TV operable from any smartphone in the room, permitting access to an interesting array of channels and online resources.

I was hesitant at first about setting it up, but thanks to a brief period of sick leave last week, was able to fully set up and get to grips with the thing, immersing myself into a frenzy of sports, films and documentaries. As I look back on a couple of days well spent, two experiences in particular stand out in memory as particularly satisfactory investments of my time and attention. The first, ‘Aussie rules’ football, the second, an old black-and-white biographical movie about the great Joe Louis, who absolutely dominated heavyweight boxing throughout the mid-20th century.

Louis was coaxed into giving boxing a go by an enthusiastic but broke young coach trying to make ends meet. When he took the plunge and decided to spend what little money he had on boxing lessons, an adolescent he sought his mother’s permission. After expressing initial surprise that “fighting” was something you could actually learn and train for, she reminded him that anything worth doing was worth doing properly, and if he was to apply himself to something he should apply himself to it fully. With that he proceeded to become one of the greatest champions the sport has ever seen. How easily Louis could have stumbled instead into historical obscurity had any of the extremely fickle conditions surrounding his discovery of boxing been only slightly different.

And then there’s Ozzy rules, a special blend of European conceptions of football and rugby, and a national treasure in one of the most advanced sporting nations in the world. In terms of sporting policy, infrastructure, and culture, the Australians are hard to beat. If you’re a talented child in Australia, an exciting world of opportunity awaits, with leading experts on hand to guide you all the way to the medals podium. I wonder how many a would-be Joe Louis might rise to sporting prominence in Australia, but never even don a boxing glove or football boot in any other place on earth. And what I wonder, would have become of Louis if he lived in Malta?

We often blame the small size of our population on the shortage of talent, but there’s not a lot we can do about the talent that simply doesn’t exist in the first place

The story of Joe Louis and modern sporting culture in Australia got me thinking deeply about the notion of talent identification in sport. It’s easy to think of discovering talent as being the sole reserve of sports professionals, but in a country as small as Malta, every helping hand can surely make a difference.

Talent is often sought using a range of models, whether we’re looking at the proportions or performance of the body, mental aptitude and focus, or even at genetics, we tend to look at pretty much whatever might help us identify the next champion hopeful.

Whether such systems are in place and functioning effectively or not, the whole process depends on encouraging our children to participate in physical activity an sport. If they never get the chance, it’s safe to say they will never climb the locally unfamiliar ladder to international sporting success. Considering this perspective, one can only speculate as to how much sporting talent must have been wasted over the years on our fair islands.

How many greats have walked among us without even being given the opportunity to fathom such greatness? We often blame the small size of our population on the shortage of talent, but either way, there’s not a lot we can do about the talent that simply doesn’t exist in the first place. So can we safely say we are maximising the talent that does? The pressure is on us specifically perhaps more so than other countries with the luxury of larger pools to start from.

When talking to parents I cannot help but ask at some point whether their children are attending any sort of organised sport or physical activity. I would be very interested on what statistics might say about the decisions most Maltese parents make, but I’ve personally heard all manner of responses. I was thrilled to speak to a sport-minded individual recently who sends his young children to more than one sport, including gymnastics, despite the latter not being a sport he would have necessarily been directly involved in himself.

He nevertheless had enough foresight to recognise the universal benefits of a sport like gymnastics for young developing athletes, and the provision of various options leaving the child free to eventually decide which to choose, if any at all. Decisions however, can be made based on information and experience, and not the lack thereof.

These days Sport Malta offer a fantastic range of programmes for kids of all ages to get involved in an impressive array of sports, in exchange for token fees. Nurseries associated with various sports might also positively surprise you with what they have to offer. The onus is on us as parents to encourage our children to get noticed in the first place, to get them in a system in which teachers and coaches can maximise the existing pathways in local sport, perhaps paving the way for our first international sporting greats.

Even if you never participated in sport or physical activity yourself, consider the benefits a more active lifestyle might bestow upon your children. Give them the chance to find out for themselves and make their own choice. In the meantime there is very little to be lost, and much to be gained.

matthewmuscatinglott@gmail.com

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