Why we win even when we lose

The life of a "renaissance man" is the only life worth living...

Oberlin athletes are not just football, fieldhockey, and soccer players; instead, they immerse themselves in numerous non-athletic endeavors, from the study of neuroscience to spinning at the local radio station. Somehow, despite their diverse commitments, they make time for sports in their daily lives.

Your typical Ohio State football player is an athlete for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. He fills his spare time eating off the competitive table, occasionally glancing at his woodshop textbooks. Not so with our Oberlin brethren.

Take student - in the full sense of the word - Kim Allen who teaches, paints, and plays Oberlin lacrosse. Or Yair Evnine who is a trained jazz guitarist, avid cook, as well as an Oberlin soccer player. Snacktime for an Oberlin athlete does not consist of knawing a pigskin.

Despite the fact that Oberlin athletics currently languishes on the lowest rung of the NCAC ladder, the students that comprise our teams are intelligent, multi-faceted individuals. They play sports for all the right reasons: competition, camaraderie, and for a simple love of the game. Instead of bemoaning our teams for a sub-par winning percentage, we should commend them for incorporating athletics into their already engaged lives.

Vince Lombardi once said, "Winning isn't' everything, but wanting to win is." And isn't that the point of competition in the first place - giving it your all while keeping an appropriate attitude toward the game? Certainly, losses are disappointing, but less so when kept in proper perspective. The Oberlin athlete realizes that while losing by forty on their home field is humiliating, it isn't life-ending. Life is about experiencing all of the world's fruits. Baseball and soccer are valid, but so is a pleasant concert at Finney and a tall, dark Guiness at the Feve.