Submitted by Seth Trujillo
Novak Djokovic, the current number 1 rated men’s tennis player in the world, was unable to show up at his best form in the Olympics and lost in his bronze medal match. The displays of negativity that he gave off in his loss, and the lack of global response to it, further displays that when we see men showing aggression, anger, or bitterness in sports, it is something that is relatively commonplace.
To recap, Djokovic broke one racket during his match, threw another one into the stands, and then decided that he was not going to play in the double’s bronze match, leaving his teammate who worked so hard for the chance to medal with a disqualification. This is some of the ugliest display of character that can be seen at the top level, and yet it is receiving significantly less noise than the fact that Simone Biles, the current number 1 rated women’s gymnast, decided to pull out of the Olympics for her own safety. The negative press that surrounds her in her decision has taken her mental health issues even further. Biles has created four new movements in the field of gymnastics, and many people call her the greatest of all time, which she rightfully deserves to be called. If we are to take her withdrawal from something that nobody else on this planet is able to do, and make it into a derogatory press release, all while ignoring the tantrum that some other guy is throwing over his inability to show his best form, then we have a bit of a problem on our hands.
To add, Novak was quoted as saying, “If you are aiming to be at the top of the game, you better start learning how to deal with pressure and how to cope with those moments, on the court and off the court,” yet he crumpled in the same instance a bit later, hurting his legacy, and ruining the chances of his teammate from another opportunity to win an Olympic medal. The behavior that he displayed shines a bad light on himself, and if individuals are going to try to tell others how to live their life, they should be able to handle the pressures themselves, otherwise it turns into “do as I say, not as I do.”
Seth Trujillo
