Sports are 'fundamental pillar' of youthful development, Pope says-- while denouncing cheaters
May 08, 2015
Sports, along with education and family life, form the “three fundamental pillars” of children’s development, Pope Francis said in a May 8 meeting with representatives of the Italian Tennis Federation.
The Pope encouraged athletes and their trainers to act as good role models for children. Their example, he said, should help young people to avoid “those dependencies that poison and ruin existence.”
It is healthy to develop a spirit of competition, the Pope said. But he denounced doping and other forms of cheating. “How ugly and sterile a victory is if it is obtained by cheating and deceiving others,” the Pontiff said.
Reminding his audience that St. Paul had likened himself to an athlete running a race, Pope Francis urged his listeners to “play the game not only in sport-– as you already do, and with excellent results-– but also in life, in the search for goodness, true goodness, without fear, with courage and enthusiasm.”
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