My uncles and other relatives are against encouraging girls in every aspect, and that includes sports. I hardly interact with them. My parents are more open. They back me all the way.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
If you look at any superior athlete, you will find a strong parental influence. Parents introduce their children to a sport, and then they support them.
In recent generations, women's sports have been a blessing. Some of us can remember the bad old days in the '50s, when we would discover in casual schoolyard play that a girl could outrun most of us or hold her own in basketball or hit a softball - but there were no teams, no coaches, for girls.
People in the States used to think that if girls were good at sports their sexuality would be affected.
Most of my cousins are boys, so I'm used to being around boys.
My daughter's mother and I are no longer dating, and the people I'm most likely to date are those around me, who are athletes.
I love sports. When I'm not playing, I'm watching, reading, or otherwise obsessing about them. This probably stems from growing up in Indiana, where if you didn't at least attempt to play basketball, you were considered of dubious moral character.
My kids have played sports all their life, and one thing I've tried to teach them when you lose, you try to be a gentleman about it.
I think when you are the parents of a gifted athlete, the best thing in the world you can do is to encourage them, in my opinion. My dad didn't push me and I didn't push my children in athletics.
My family are not sporty - they are all doctors or lawyers.
My kids have played soccer and baseball and basketball, and the parents who come to games are always saying and doing things that are just wildly inappropriate.