Unsportsmanlike Behavior Prompts Letter from WHS Athletic Director

The following letter from Chris McDougal, Athletic Director for Wilton High School, is posted on the school website:

Dear Students, Parents/Guardians: 

Sportsmanship is a very powerful attribute when it is used in its most positive sense. The fans at our Wilton High School sporting events have a unique opportunity to play an exceptional role, in the outcome of our games/matches/meets. You have the power to be that extra player on the field through your enthusiasm and positive interaction with the players on the field. Wilton High School believes in the concept of good sportsmanship as the overriding priority in the high school’s athletic programs. 

Our athletic fields are an extension of our classrooms, and the values of respect and fair play are the cornerstone of the athletic department here at Wilton. We always encourage our students to be the best they can be, and put forth their maximum effort. We also teach them to respect the other players on the field and understand that, at the end of the day, it is only a game! In order to reinforce our commitment to insuring good sportsmanship, any athlete that participates in any act of unsportsmanlike behavior may be subject to penalties above and beyond those imposed by Wilton High School. 

The parents and the fans who attend the games also have to make a commitment to good sportsmanship. Not only must we talk to our children, but we must also display it at all athletic events. There have been far too many situations in which the athletes exhibit good sportsmanship while the adults in the stands and on the sidelines let their emotions take control and exhibit behaviors of anger and aggression. Please cheer for Wilton and not against their opponents or the officials. 

Parents Please Remember, your children may not always listen to you, but they are always watching you! Please model good sportsmanship for them. And again Cheer for Wilton!!! Cheer very loudly for Wilton!!! But do not yell at or against their opponents or officials. 

Sincerely, 
Chris McDougal 
Athletic Director 
Wilton High School