scene on the court
Spotlight on Sportsmanship
By Craig Laughlin
A . K . A . “ THE PICKLEBALL CURMUDGEON ”
Take Out the Trash
Trash talking or taunting is a recurring topic on Facebook ’ s Pickleball Forum , a frequent source of inspiration for this column . A few weeks ago , trash talk was making its way to the top of the list of behaviors your faithful curmudgeon had not yet addressed in this space . The following posts and comments ( which may be edited for brevity or clarity ) are just a few that had already gotten my curmudgeonly juices flowing — mainly because so many people seem to think taunting is perfectly fine . POST : “ What about trash talk ? I was playing today when I heard my opponent say , ‘ You suck . Just give up . Go cry to your mom , you clown .’ She was at least 70 years old ! I respect her .”
COMMENTS ( most supportive to least supportive ):
• “ That woman is my new hero ! How did you not burst out laughing ? If she was serious , I would have tattooed her with the next ball and said , “ Who ’ s the clown , now ?”
• “ Hahaha ! Too funny ! Oh , did you get a chance to tag her ?”
• “ That will literally be me when I ’ m 70 . Only the male version .”
• “ Many of us trash talk all the time in our league because we know each other . Personally , I ’ d enjoy getting trash-talked by a 70 + woman . I ’ d probably be laughing so loud I ’ d botch my shot .”
• “ Talking smack is OK in small doses , especially in a playful way .”
• “ I love trash talk among friends , but what you described was not trash talk , it was just rude .”
• “ That ’ s not trash talking ; that ’ s just being mean . Don ’ t have the time of day for people like that .”
• “ Trash talking is bad sportsmanship . I don ’ t care if you are 8 or 80 .”
• “ When you are the victim of other people ’ s belittling , recognize that things could be worse ! You could be them !”
When it comes to pickleball , the USAP Sportsmanship Guide admonishes us to treat everyone ( players , officials , volunteers , staff and spectators ) with courtesy and respect . Taunting is neither courteous nor respectful , and thus clearly violates pickleball ’ s sportsmanship code . Yes , there can be a fine line between taunting an opponent and the good-natured ribbing of a friend . You can honor our sport ’ s foundational values by knowing where to draw that line , and by never forgetting that good sportsmanship is always in your court . •
The USA Pickleball Sportsmanship Guide can be downloaded at usapickleball . org / member-news / usa-pickleball-sportsmanship-guide .
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