For the fifth year in a row, Malden High School was awarded the Sportsmanship Honor Roll in District 5 by the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA). Across the state, there are nine districts organized by the MIAA. Malden is in district five along with the Northeastern Conference, Cape Ann League and Commonwealth Athletic Conference.
This award is granted to schools for not having any student-athletes or coaches disqualified or suspended from an athletic contest during the school year. Good sportsmanship consists of honest competition, good relationships with teammates and accepting the results of the game, regardless of the outcome.
Schools should practice the ability to accept defeat without objection or complaint, victory without bragging and the treatment of opponents with integrity and respect. With this award, it reveals how coaches are now more of a role model to students rather than having an individual training them for a game only to win. Charlie Conefrey, the Director of Athletics and Physical Education in Malden, stated that by achieving this award “it shows that the kids are following the lead of the coaches, who are following the lead of our athletic department and administration from Malden High school.”
Conefrey believes that “sportsmanship permeates virtually every aspect of our culture as ethics and fair play [which] applies in all facets of life.” He mentioned that the award “is a measure of our school’s understanding and commitment to the educational nature of interscholastic athletics.”
He further added that “[Malden High School] tries to teach sportsmanship in all aspects.” Conefrey also explained that sportsmanship simply consists of respect, and it is for yourself or your opponent. Moreover, that “it is [about] respect in all aspects of gameplay, being gratuitous when you win, and being just as gratuitous when you lose.”
Overall, it is one of his favorite honors because it directly reflects how the Malden community “work[s] well together” and on top of that, represents Malden as an athletic department and that what they are essentially teaching is that sports are not always about winning, rather it is about “having respect for yourself, your peers, your school, and your community.”
