DID your child’s school have a sports day this year and did it involve real competition?

In 2017, many primary schools in particular have decided to stop genuine competition in favour of allowing every child to “win” with no outright, real winners.

While it’s understandable that everyone wants individual children to feel valued, I really don’t understand the principle that there must be no winners or losers because it might upset someone.

Competition is often the key to children’s development and it’s not something wrong or something not to be celebrated. Children excel as individuals in different ways – not all are sporty but they may have other skills in which they’re talented.

The key here is that without a sense of competing, we remove the determination in children to try harder in order to achieve. We also miss out on another chance to underline how life is actually lived.

It’s a tough world today and children need to develop a sense of their own worth in relation to everyone else. They need to have pride and respect in themselves and their achievements but, at the same time, realise that they will not always be the best at what they do. They may lose.

The true worth of an individual is not how they behave in victory but how they cope with defeat. Teaching children to be gracious in all circumstances, but particularly when they have lost out to someone else, helps hone personalities. It also gives them the will to try harder next time.

Youngsters generally enjoy competition; it’s in their DNA. The local children who took part in the Greater Manchester Summer School Games, for example, will have had a great time competing for their school and their town.

That sense of competition, especially in sport, can also offer healthy activities and a social life with like-minded people for many years. The Bolton Sports Federation’s popular annual tennis tournament runs through this week, showcasing some of the best local players. And just think how enjoyable this year’s Wimbledon tournament has been for competitors and spectators alike.

No. Let’s have some common sense about competition and encourage our youngsters to simply do their best. Give prizes for trying by all means – we need to value effort and encourage for next time – but don’t let an over-enthusiastic sense of fairness damage the intrinsic value of competition. It’s what life is built around.