Beware the Talent Trap: A short essay on the psychological cost of early stardom (2022 revised)
“I’m going to be a footballer”
“I’m going to be in the NBA”
Ask any child and you’re bound to hear it.
And whilst I’m not refuting the power these increasingly common, new-age ‘wish it into existence’ mantras have, I’m slightly skeptical of the disillusionment and danger that entails when these things don’t go to plan.
According to a 2021 report published by Sky News, between 10,000–12,000 boys are registered within the prestigious realm of football’s youth development programmes in the UK. However, of this figure, ‘less than 0.5% [ of those entering these academies at the age of nine] will ever make a living from the game.’
That figure is not only shocking because of how disproportionate it seems, but because it also highlights a glaring problem: For every professional sports star you see on television, for every actor you see dedicating their award to the half-truth ‘hard work pays off’ line, there will be more kids on the other side of that screen who, for reasons beyond ‘not working hard enough’, will never see their dreams come to fruition.
However, this isn’t about the ‘lost boys’ of sports. This is about the lucky few, the 99.5% who found their way in.
As the old adage goes:
“All that glitters isn’t gold”
At the end of the round, in his bout against Andy Ruiz back in 2019, Anthony Joshua - the former world heavyweight champion -turned to his corner man and uttered a phrase that we can all, in our own dark nights of the soul, relate to:
“Why am I feeling like this?”
A few years later, in August of 2022, Joshua - a man who rose up the ranks of British boxing in quick succession, would then shed tears after a second loss to Ukrainian boxer, Oleksandr Usyk.
It was in these ‘low’ moments when the mercurial media, his fans, and even his sponsors, which once glorified and labeled him a somewhat ‘poster boy’ for boxing, were quick to jump ship and point the other finger.
His comment sections too, a former place of praise, are now - on every update - littered with words of scorn.
When Mike Tyson hung up his gloves in 2005, he was candid about the mental health struggles he was facing in his retirement days.
“I am ‘nothing’ without boxing.”, he said plainly.
Yet this infatuation with athletes that dissipates upon their first defeat is not just exclusive to boxers…
… The same is happening right now with Ronaldo…
… The same is happening with Mo Farah.
And the same will continue to happen with every child until we stop raising them to find their worth only in the gaze of a crowd.
Training for a game is important. But what’s equally important, which doesn’t seem to be addressed enough, is training for life beyond that game.
The more talented a child is, the more a community will shower them with praise. But when that talent dissipates… when they fall ill, break a bone, and are forced to throw in the towel, the praise will fall silent and the child is left in the cold.
“In youth sport, the world talent is everywhere.”, writes Leigh Aston. “We overuse it and we misuse it […] When we fall into the talent trap, we give immense value to an inconsistent and unreliable predictor of success. We confuse people with conflicting ideas, and we enable a misdirected, biased process to determine who should and shouldn't be supported.”1
This is why it’s imperative for parents (and yes, the wider community) to guard a child from the spotlight, the applause, and begin the work of affirming them in ways beyond their obvious talent (and perceived beauty).
What do we do when things go wrong?
When the thing we orientated our life around starts to betray us?
When our body reaches its plateau and we can no longer kick, shoot, throw, punch, or run with the previous amount of vigour?
What do we do when the curtains close, the lights fade, and the crowds stop cheering our name?…
…When we’re forced to step aside and, like The Eagles song, watch the new kid take our place on the podium?
This article was originally published on December 9, 2022 on Medium by Kamal Farrah. A few minor edits have been made in this revision. You can find the original article here: https://kamalfarrah.medium.com/the-talent-trap-the-one-thing-that-isn-t-spoken-enough-about-in-sports-f087926ecc07
