Our family attended a swim meet that two of our kids participated in this weekend.

It was Hanna’s first time swimming outside of practicing at her home pool after a slew of injuries and Ellie’s third time at an actual meet.

The meet was out of town which meant staying overnight in a hotel, eating out, a lot of waiting around and goofing off with friends; the perfect kids weekend.

Overall it was a great weekend for the kids and in my mind, they’re all winners.

So where are the trophies?

I have been reading with great interest the debate over why we feel the need to champion kids in sport for simply showing up, rather than the way we did it when we were kids by assigning ribbons, plaques and prizes only to those athletes who legitimately beat records, posted exceptional times or came in first, second or third place.

Having just returned from a swim meet with hundreds of kids who couldn’t possibly all go home with a plaque, I have given this some serious thought.

I do think those kids who break records, place in the top three in their categories and wow the crowds do get the attention and accolades they richly deserve for their achievements.

I also think those participants who place twenty-ninth out of forty-one kids could benefit by taking home a memento from the meet that reminds them of how brave they were, how much their hard work is paying off and when they go to school on Monday, they can show their classmates that they stood on a starting block in front of hundreds of cheering parents (barely able to sleep or eat they were so incredibly nervous for them) and have something tangible to show for it.

It’s a reminder they stood up and tried. That taking risks can be scary but also empowering. That facing your fears can leave you feeling exhilarated and exhausted and overwhelmingly alive.

I don’t think it takes anything away from the “winners” to have a prize for all participants. I do think a prize-for-all, acts as a great reminder that they were a part of something, something a little scary, something bigger than they are and one day they might walk away with the first place trophy or a medal or a different coloured ribbon with a completely different meaning attached.

Does it give those kids who didn’t win a false sense of how the “real world” works?

I don’t think so.

I think situations like these are ones we should champion. We should hand out ribbons. We should make every child feel special and adored and proud, if not in an environment like this then where?

I’m not suggesting the child sitting at home watching a cartoon marathon all weekend should be given a medal but given the age and skill level of these kids, how could it not motivate them to continue to participate by giving them a special trinket that says “you did something not everyone would have the courage to do and for that, we honour you?”

Sometimes going back to the way we used to do things doesn’t necessarily make us right.

I remember leaving many gymnastics competitions empty handed. Did it motivate me to love the sport, want to go back or continue to try at practice? Nope! Isn’t that the point of this exercise?

Exercise!

Let’s keep our kids active. Let’s continue to do everything we can to motivate them to work hard, gain strength and endurance, place physical fitness in a category of importance in their young lives and let’s continue to hand out ribbons to our children who show up and try.

All of them.