I was working in one of my first real jobs after competing in the 1998 Olympics, and a colleague pulled me aside to ask some advice. He was frustrated with his 11-year-old son, who was a gifted youth soccer player. It seemed that the boy had lost his drive and his father was failing in his effort to get his son to work harder in practice. He wanted my help in convincing the boy to work harder. Without thinking much about it, I simply told him that the only thing he could do was to make sure the boy was having fun, because it shouldn’t feel like work at that age.

The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) was a key contributor at this month’s Project Play Roundtable, “What Do Mothers Want from Youth Sports?” Hosted by the Aspen Institute Sports & Society Program in partnership with ESPN, the roundtable brought together a diverse group of stakeholders in the area of safety in youth sports.