It was a summer day in 2022 in Kentucky, hot, humid, sunny. The day was spent lounging by the pool watching my babysitters. Then at night I played baseball with my friends. And by “played” I mean I was controlling the aux and chatting with my friends while we watched our other sports minded friends play. Here’s how the summer months went. We were all students at the University of Kentucky and considered Lexington our home. I was going to graduate school and had a great love for the city and the state as a whole. So naturally, when a part of the state was hurting, it really affected and moved me and others who call this place home.
In late July 2022, there was a flooding crisis in Eastern Kentucky that killed and displaced many people. Most of the affected towns were rural and not wealthy, so the disaster would require more cash than people could afford to spend. As a student in the UK, I witnessed myself and others grieving the loss and trauma affecting another part of the Commonwealth. I remember watching the news and at the same time feeling lost for words and wanting to jump in to help. But, being broke college students, there wasn’t much we could do except volunteer or pray. We couldn’t fix the money problem. Fortunately, the players on the men’s basketball team also had a lot of love for these people, and they knew a way they could help. They approached Coach Cal and together they decided to host an open business telethon event where all proceeds would go to help flood victims. In that three-hour period, they raised $2.4 million, greatly helping flood victims in their time of need. They did something extraordinary with their time and talent that I still deeply admire. I’ve always loved sports, but their actions deepened my appreciation for how impactful teams can be on the world around us.
Fast forward to August 2023, my first month living in New York. I knew I wanted to visit the 9/11 Memorial and Museum to pay tribute and respect those who lost their lives in a city I knew I would love. While looking for tickets, I stumbled across a past exhibit called “The Season of Return: sports after 9/11”. In this exhibition, there were countless examples of how sports helped to heal and unite a nation that was deeply wounded. From the Mets vs. Braves game, New York Jets players’ decisions to play or not to play, to victory laps around a NASCAR race track, there have been many stories surrounding the idea that sports give people the time and space to heal. tragedy.
In 2005, Ivory Coast’s World Cup athletes used their visibility to encourage their country to lay down its arms amid civil war. A truce was announced a little later. In 2013, a Boston Red Sox game brought together a city mourning the loss of the Boston Marathon bombing. In 2018, a hockey team with players from both North and South Korea briefly brought fans together and even sparked private conversations between the leaders of the two countries. A Thai soccer team that survived a cave has sparked celebration around the world. Even the goal of the modern Olympic Games, according to the IOC, is to create a more peaceful and better world. And how do they do it? Through sports. Every now and then we see sport placed at the center of a unifying vision.
Think about the last time you participated in a sporting event. Chances are, you went to the game with family or friends, but you were in a crowd of people rooting for the same team as you. And when a star player scored a clutch score, you cheered, hugged, screamed with pride, cried with that unknown sea. Race, religion, socioeconomic status, political party, sexuality; none of it mattered. The important thing was the celebration of the beautiful game.
In all of these we see a common ground: sports. This is why sports are so important and beautiful. Sports have a way of bringing people together like nothing else. About bringing together the most unlikely friends. From the wounds that heal in tragedy.
Photos via Getty Images.
