5 things to celebrate about the Utah sports scene

SALT LAKE CITY — Fall sports are firing up! With that can come stories of that outspoken sideline parent, the ultra competitive youth league, politics or big pressure for little kids to perform.

Still, sports psychologist Dr. Tom Golightly said there is a lot to appreciate and celebrate about the Utah sports scene. He shared five characteristics of Utah sports, and the Utah sports scene, that we can be proud of.

Learning Life Skills

"It's pretty well documented that participating in sports as a youth has a ton of socio-emotional benefit," Dr. Golightly said.

Those benefits go far beyond the playing field. Kids develop skills in interpersonal relationships, emotional resilience, self-efficacy and stress management through youth sports participation. Those lessons don't just go away once the season ends.

"Studies have shown longitudinally that that lasts into adulthood," he said.

For many kids, sports are one of the earliest environments where they learn how to manage hardships, work with others and build confidence.

There are Many Opportunities

Dr. Golightly said access is one of Utah's greatest strengths in sports.

" We have an enormous young population, but so many of them have opportunities to be a part of those things, dance, football, basketball, volleyball, soccer, baseball," he explained. "If you wanna engage in it, your community's gonna have something around it."

Accessibility allows more young people to participate and reap the developmental benefits of sports, regardless of their skill level.

All the Levels of Play

Dr. Golightly also emphasized the depth of Utah's sports ecosystem.

"You can really train at every level," he explained. "If you wanna compete at a really competitive level... you can probably find that opportunity here in Utah."

Lots of states have opportunities for beginners, but Utah provides a full pathway all the way to elite-level competition.

"You can go from beginner level all the way through to the pro level," Dr. Golightly said. "You can actually play hockey on the same ice that the Mammoth practice on."

Volunteer Spirit

The programs matter, but Dr. Golightly said one of Utah's biggest strengths comes from its volunteer power.

"I think we do so well at that in the state of Utah," he said. "We jump in or we volunteer."

Youth sports would look very different without the parents, grandparents and community members who donate their time.

"You can coach, you can ref, you can carpool," Dr. Golightly noted. "I think we do such a good job of being the volunteers."

Local Facilities

Dr. Golightly also highlighted Utah's sports infrastructure, which is often overlooked.

"When I grew up, I was playing on dirt fields and blacktop," he said. "But now, every city has a rec center, you're playing in gorgeous gyms. These fields are well manicured."

This story was adapted from a TV broadcast script using artificial intelligence. Every story, including those adapted with AI, is reviewed by a human editor before publication to ensure that KSL's editorial standards are upheld.