Should Everyone Receive A Medal?

 

When I began “racing” 46 years ago, I remember receiving race ribbons for finishing in the top 4 of my elementary school field day track and field events.  It was a simple ribbon that was folded over and had the finish place number glittered on the end of the ribbon. Everyone didn't get one--you had to earn it.

One of the most hotly debated subjects in the world of youth sports is participation trophies and their effect on children’s development. 

In my home state of North Carolina, lawmakers introduced a bill to ban giving children participation trophies for youth sports activities. The bill says that any award given to children for youth recreation activities must be based on identified performance achievements.

The discussion over participation awards is nothing new. Those that oppose giving children awards for participation in an athletic activity rather than winning, dates back decades.

But what about finishing medals for adults when completing an event such as a running event, triathlon, etc.? Why is this not debated? 

As the number of road races in America has multiplied, the finisher’s medal has become a competitive tool. Once bronze-colored, it now sparkles in green, yellow and red. Once coin-shaped, it now comes in the shape of sneakers, dog tags, spaceships, flying pigs and surf boards. Some feature parts that spin like a top. A few double as bottle openers.

Once, only winners got a medal. Now, last-place finishers get at least one—and can get more by participating in frequent-runner programs.

In Marathon and Beyond magazine, a popular feature is its annual list of the 25 best finisher medals. Last year, it awarded first place to Fort Lauderdale’s A1A Marathon, for a medal containing a locket surrounded by sea horses. The sea horses were beautiful and added an artistic flair, a judge said in the article. “And the locket thing is just nifty.”

Women in particular have embraced finisher awards. In a sport once dominated by men, women now account for nearly 60% of road-race finishers, according to Running USA, an industry-supported research group. As Walt Disney Co. and Nike Inc. started offering tiaras and Tiffany necklaces at races for women, other race organizers started getting creative. They realized that women were drawn to the medal.

It was after the New York City Marathon began giving every finisher a medal in the 1970s that it became a road-race ritual. But even then, few races made a big deal of their medals. Most gave greater promotion to their T-shirts.

Finisher medals aren’t expensive. Race organizers pay about $3 each for medal.  Since the 1990s, the demand for race medals has increased to about 300,000 a month from about 50,000. Demand is also growing for ways to display finisher medals.

I personally have 2 displays of finisher medals. The medals are surrounded by other awards that I have received, and they all have 2 things in common—I rarely look at them and they collect dust.

My father once said, “there are a billion Chinese that don’t know you even participated.”  There’s so much truth to that statement. In fact, most can’t tell you who won a championship a year ago and nobody really cares—except you. 

As for participation medals—WHO CARES? Most won’t even know who won or lost.