This Athletic Code of Ethics appeared in the May, 1922 edition of The Athletic Journal. The Athletic Journal began in 1921 and deemed themselves “A Professional Magazine for Coaches of the Country”.
It is quite interesting to read the code with the different use of language and some dated terminologies, however, it is a very relevant code for your athlete’s and basketball players today.
An Athletic Code of Ethics
As an athlete I am determined:
To play the game to the limit of my capacities, giving to each detail the greatest care and attention.
To strive to carry more than my own burden, to do a little more than my share, not seeking help from others.
To correct my faults, ever eager to learn and improve, never seeking to cover up or conceal mistakes made.
To carry the fight to the opponents with the spirit of the “Old Guard that dies but never surrenders.”
To be unselfish in endeavor, caring more for the satisfaction which comes from doing a thing well than for praise.
To glory in fighting against the odds like the Lacedaemonians who never asked of the enemy “how many are there but where are they.”
To hate an alibi, knowing that the man who makes excuses admits his weakness and has a dwarfed soul.
To rise above obstacles, to fight harder when the game is going the other way than when winning.
To fight with an unconquerable spirit, realizing with every act that the “deed is the measure of the man.”
To play according to the letter and the spirit of the rules, scorning an unfair advantage over an opponent.
To be undismayed by defeat but with a will hardened by adversity seek to learn the cause of the failure.
To be unspoiled by victories, realizing that brave men are softened by success rather than by defeat.
To give the best that’s in me to the end that I may be a better student, a better citizen, a better man.
Feel free to share this with your players. This might even be something to include in your player binders / notebooks. These are definitely some great codes to play by!
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