SteemSports 2k Giveaway: Growing Up Surrounded By Sports

My First Interactions With Sports

My very first interactions with sports began on the sidelines of my older sister's soccer (or football everywhere besides the USA and Canada) games. My parents still tell the story about how I had just learned how to walk, yet I would stand on the sidelines every game, kicking a small soccer ball around and trying to get anyone I could get to stop watching the game to come play with me. This was the first indication to my family that soccer would become my first love.

Heartbreak as a Sports Fan

Even if you are somehow a Yankees, Celtics, and Steelers fan (sounds like a bandwagoner to me) it's very likely you've experienced lots of heartbreak as a sports fan. My first heartbreak was in 2002, at the age of 5. And, not only did it strike once, but twice. First was the NBA Western Conference Finals. I'm from a small suburb of Sacramento, so naturally I'm a Kings fan. If you don't know, that year the Kings were 100% rigged out of at least the NBA finals, if not the championship. Game 6 was the worse refereed game in history of any sport. Game 7 resulted in a last second Robert Horry 3 pointer for the Lakers to beat the Kings. After that ball went through the net, my 5 year old self threw such a temper tantrum I ran outside crying and jumped in my pool fully clothed. My first heartbreak from sports. Like I mentioned earlier, it struck again later that year. My beloved San Francisco Giants were in the World Series against the (at the time) Anaheim Angels. Game 6 saw the Giants with a lead late in the game that they couldn't hold onto. Game 7 was close, but ultimately my Giants lost the World Series. Another favorite team deep in a playoff run, another heartbreak. This one didn't result in another pool jump seeing as it was late in October and starting to get really cold. However, the next spring when I signed up for Tee Ball for my very first season and was put on the Angels, I threw another tantrum of epic proportions. My dad still recounts to me today how I just cried into his arms repeating over and over "I don't wanna be an Angel".

Testing Out All the Sports

I played baseball for 6 years, I swam for 4 years, I played one season of basketball, and I even did gymnastics for a while. However, soccer was always my love. I gave up every other sport for it. And why? Neither of my parents ever played the sport growing up. We never watched it on TV. The only exposure I had to it at a very young age was my sister's few seasons on a recreational team. Something about soccer sparked a passion for me that almost nothing else has been able to. I love everything about the game, even all the running I experienced as a Central Midfielder.

Passion For the Game

I got involved in competitive, travel soccer at age 9. I have no one to thank besides my parents for always supporting me through my soccer journey. They drove me to every practice, every game, and every tournament no matter how far away. My parents got divorced two years before I started competitive soccer, but they still didn't let that ruin my passion for the game. And as times at home got worse, I always had soccer. It was there for me when no one else was. Soccer helped me get through my hormonal early teenage years and even month long stints of bad depression. There were times where the only thing I looked forward to was practice with my coach and teammates. My long time coach is like a second father to me and all my long time teammates are brothers. In fact, I wouldn't be into cryptocurrencies and therefore SteemIt if it wasn't for a guy who was on my team for all 10 years I played competitive soccer showing me his portfolio of altcoins.

Sports have done so much more for me than just provide entertainment. Sports aren't just an aspect of life, they truly are a WAY of life. Thank you to @steemsports @theprophet0 @the23chronicles @ericgordon and @theregularguy, tovjust name a few people whose sports content I always read and pay attention to here on SteemIt.

If you enjoyed the article, don't forget to upvote, resteem and follow me @brianm4