The Difficult Life Of A Professional Athlete
Blades | September 2nd, 2011 - 2:18 pm | Posted in: Miscellaneous | Comments: 7I’m sure this post will upset half the people reading it (meaning 1 or 2 people at the most), but I thought I’d voice a different point of view than the one I’ve been reading since Belak’s death.
I like hockey. I like sports in general. And while I stay current with the four major sports, I consider myself a casual sports fan at the end of the day because I rarely ever plan my days around sports — with the notable exception being the NFL Playoffs.
I refuse to put these athletes on some pedestal like I may have when I was a kid. Reading some of the stuff I’ve been reading the past few weeks leaves me a bit perturbed because it showers pity on professional athletes. That’s just silly, in my opinion, of course.
Wade Belak committed suicide (allegedly). Rick Rypien committed suicide (allegedly). Derek Boogaard mixed pills with alcohol (allegedly) and died.
All sad tragedies for those who knew them on a personal level. And extra painful and sad for Belak’s daughters who are the biggest victims of their father’s death.
But I’m sorry, heroes or martyrs they are not. People commit suicide every day and most don’t have the options or possibilities that professional athletes do.
And that’s why these words by Georgs Laraque on the plight of enforcers really made me see what a delusional world some people live in.
“This job is so hard, physically and mentally,” said Laraque. “You can go to a movie theatre the night before a game and you’re thinking of the fight you’re going to get into the next day.
“Like, you have to fight Boogaard. Then that game’s over and it’s like, ‘OK, I have to fight Jody Shelley.’ After that it’s Brian McGrattan. You try not to think about it, but you start with the drugs or the alcohol and that creates the problem,” Laraque continued.
“And, when you retire, most of the tough guys aren’t set (for life). You don’t make a lot of money as a fighter, so they’re thinking ‘OK, now what do I do? So they go back to drugs and alcohol. There’s no options.”
I’m sorry but this is typical “I have it so rough” drama queen type stuff.
Let’s address the “when you retire, most of the tough guys aren’t set (for life)” line. Minimum salary in the NHL these days is over $500k a year. You play in the league for four years and you’re basically a millionaire after agent fees, taxes, etc. 100% of the population can retire with $1,000,000 in their bank. That is, unless they want to live a lifestyle that’s not entirely needed.
Now the line “So they go back to drugs and alcohol. There’s no options.” Are you kidding me? There are options available for professional athletes that aren’t available to anyone in society. Putting “NHL Player” on your resume I would imagine opens up way more doors than, say, “Hockey Blogger.” Some use this to their advantage. others toil away in self-pity; Just like in the general population.
And now to the line “This job is so hard, physically and mentally.” While I can see the fighting week in and week out taking its toll on a person, this is another self-pity line by Laraque. The life of on an NHLer is not hard, no matter what some people will write. They are pampered and taken care of in every single aspect of their lives. They play a game that is made out to be more than a game, which some buy into causing unneeded stress. And while they may have to deal with physical injuries more often than the general population, it is the line of work they chose. Don’t like it? Quit.
Which brings me to the other contradiction I keep reading. If life is so hard as a player, how can it be depressing when you retire?
I guess the one thing it’s all about at the end of the day is personal greed. Some people want their fame, their perks, their lifestyle and their money. When they have to sacrifice something to get it, they wallow away in self-pity or complain. Kind of silly when you think about it, no?
As far as the disease of depression goes. It is just that: A disease. It affects everyone from athletes to cashiers. People shouldn’t make the sport the story when it comes to depression but rather they should focus on the individual, his story and the disease itself. I know very little about Rypien, Boogaard and Belak’s life story. You’d think people would focus more on that rather than the fact they were just hockey players.
In the case of Rypien, I just found out a few days ago that his girlfriend died in a car accident while he was in junior. Makes you think that would have a greater effect on his life path than fighting ever did, no?
And if hits to the head because of the sport are to blame for some athletes, then I’m sorry to sound cold, but that’s the price of doing business. Just like every time I get on a plane, there’s a chance the plane will crash. And even if we eliminate all unnecessary physical contact (like fighting), there’s still going to be individuals abusing drugs and alcohol, because while they may live in a fantasy world, they’re still human. And like many humans they like to create problems for themselves rather seeing their blessings.
7 Responses to “The Difficult Life Of A Professional Athlete”
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Thank you for essentially echoing everything I have been thinking since I heard of Belak’s death and started hearing people moan and whine and hold pity parties.
good thoughts there.
rypien’s gf died in a car crash while she was on her way to see him play. his junior coach described that as the starting point of his depressions which he had been battling for 10 years … makes rick’s suicide a bit different than the two other ones, at least in my book.
still hoping that ppl/the media will focus more on depression as a disease instead of glorifying thhe hockey/fighter aspect.
still, life as a hockey fighter is some sort of faustian bargain … read the article on pd about that?
I’m sorry… I like much of your writing, but the arguments you make here are a sign of your ignorance on the majority of this subject. You’re taking one person’s comments (Laraque’s) and you’re painting the entire issue in what he said. It’s ridiculous to assume that he’s referring to EVERY case…
“If life is so hard as a player, how can it be depressing when you retire?”
I know little of your own background, but this comment reeks of a lack of experience playing high-level competitive team sports.
This piece is more of a personal rant than a well-established argument. Stick to the jokes.
kenboldt – thanks! glad someone else feels the same.
rouven – how you been? Life treating you well? I didn’t read that piece you’re referring to.
will – the message I was trying to convey (and yeah it was a personal rant of sorts) was the way everyone was making these athletes out to be victims of the sport. I’ve read countless articles since the death of Boogaard to the days following Belak’s death that paint these athletes as victims of the sport.
Obviously the vast majority of pro athletes are grateful individuals who don’t share the same “feel sorry for us” attitude that guys like Laraque do. I guess I didn’t convey that message in my post because I wasn’t talking about those athletes. I was talking about guys like Laraque. And I was talking about the media/fans who buy into that as is evident by the amount of writing of that ilk I’ve seen in the past few months.
Now regarding:
“’If life is so hard as a player, how can it be depressing when you retire?’
I know little of your own background, but this comment reeks of a lack of experience playing high-level competitive team sports.”
I have never played high-level team sports so you are correct on that. But the point I was making was in relation to Laraque’s comments that basically said a) life as a fighter in the NHL is hell and b) then when you no longer have that job you go back to the alcohol and drugs.
That to me sounds like a contradiction.
Look, most NHL guys are really good guys. But the ones that make the big show (like the three that died this year) don’t have rough lives as far as the professional aspect of their career goes. Even the least paid NHL player is compensated very nicely and leads a very pampered life.
I may have not played “high-level competitive team sports” but I did have experience being around hockey players in the 90′s and the allure that they battle/suffer injuries, hectic travel and other problems is just that: an allure. The truth is that they lead very pampered lives and I imagine it’s even more so these days.
[...] also had some great words on what Laraque said (my post about that here)… “Oh, listen to this big bullead sayin’: ‘It’s the toughest job in [...]
Are you kidding me..? Of course you would write this seeing that you’ve never played a sport at even an intermediate level. Hockey players have a grueling season mentally, physically and emotionally. Practices are done on ice 1-2 times a day for 1 1/2 hours and after each practice there is either cross country running or weight lifting. TWO (1 practice that day) TO FOUR(2 practices) hours MINIMUM a day depending on how long you push for yourself. I’d love to see you manage that 6x days a week(Pre season). Pressure from your coaches/teammates/yourself to perform causes incredible amounts of stress, because if you don’t play well, then you’re going to be out of a job eventually. Traveling constantly, injurys, many players on pro teams are playing through injurys half of the year. What’s so pampered about flying every other day during road trips are you trying to say that playing a 4th road-trip game playing every other day is easy? Allure of injurys? LOL what hockey players were you around? Central hockey league players? Injurys happen to everyone during the year and most are battling them without every disclosing them to the media, pulled/torn muscles, broken bones. 10 months out of the year they prepare/play and they get 2 months off if they didn’t make playoffs. I just don’t get why people constantly think 500k-1million is over payment for these guys. Do you know why these guys are paid that much? (Rhetorical question) Of course you don’t, the real reason is, because it’s such a demanding job not many people can achieve that level of play or have the strength it takes both mentally and physically to go through a season of pro hockey.
Stick with your jokes
If you’re talking about Russian hockey then by all means you may be right but if you think that an NHL team does this:
“Practices are done on ice 1-2 times a day for 1 1/2 hours and after each practice there is either cross country running or weight lifting.”
Then you, my friend, are insane!
An NHL team may have 1 or 2 practices (3 at the most) over the course of a week during the season. The rest is light day game skates. Flights are on charters and road trips consist of staying in luxury hotels, and believe me when I say this, the players enjoy them more than they let on.