Athlete Minded: Stories

On this Mother's Day Special Episode, I talk to my mom, Nancy Hartnett, about the effects of bullying in athletics. Yes, it's a Mother's Day Special, but she was also a collegiate tennis player at Montclair State and Florida Atlantic University.  She also has been through the current world of sports and seen first-hand the effects of when a coach bullies their players. We discuss bullying in this episode, but we also talk about what can be done about it.  We also discuss how, 10 years later, the same coach is doing the same things, and nothing or nobody is doing anything about it.  Why?  We determine because nobody wants to put their neck out for the kids.   We also discuss how the most powerful people at the school are typically the coaches of the sports teams, and why a petition to remove a mentally or emotionally abusive coach wouldn't work, because the families of the athlete don't want their names on that list since it could jeopardize their child's sports career.