Sample Speeches Motion: Professionalism detracts from sportsmanship Side: Negative Opening speech of the captain Good afternoon

ladies and gentlemen, Having been enlightened by the affirmative side on the definition of the motion, Id li e to redefine it in a broader, more !p"to"date #ay$ %Professionalism& refers to the practice of paying players #ho participate in certain sports$ More and more sports are becoming professional$ 'hy( )eca!se paid players have the time to p!rs!e e*cellence, in fitness and ability to reach high levels of s ill$ Id li e to remind o!r opponents that professionalism also incl!des setting !p professional bodies and employing people #ho have e*pertise of the profession, people li e professional trainers$ +he #ord %sportsmanship& involves both attit!de and behavior$ ,ear opponents, Ill sha e hands #ith yo!, #hether my team #ins or loses$ +hat sho#s sportsmanship, right( )!t gen!ine sportsmanship goes beyond gest!res of co!rtesy$ It refers to fairness, honesty and politeness in a competition$ -espect for the r!les and for other players is important$ If #e #in this debate and gloat over o!r victory, #e sho# poor sportsmanship$ If #e lose and c!rse o!r opponents and ad.!dicators, #e also sho# poor sportsmanship$ If #e thin #e are li ely to lose and give !p trying, thats poor sportsmanship too$ Or if #e resort to dirty tric s li e spying over o!r opponents, needless to say, poor sportsmanship again$ In defining sportsmanship, o!r opponent has missed one very important point$ /ill Oser says, %sportsmanship is abo!t competing and training and getting to yo!r pea ability$& Please note the phrase %getting to yo!r pea ability&$ +his is precisely #hat professionalism helps players achieve$ Sportsmanship is seen and admired in professional games despite some

aberrations$ ,ont yo! admire the s ill and sportsmanship of Pele( Not many admire /ohn Mc0nroe and enroll in His School of Sportsmanship, do they( Professionalism strengthens rather than detracts from sportsmanship$ Professional players #in the game #ith their e*pertise1 they need not fall bac on dirty play$ 2lso, fo!l play endangers their livelihood, so participants are less li ely to do it and r!in their careers$ Professional bodies help lay do#n r!les and ens!re that players abide by these r!les$ Professional trainers help sportsmen strengthen their e*pertise, th!s enabling them to perform to the best of their ability$ 0ven if the affirmative side thin s that sportsmanship is not al#ays practiced, #e can tell yo! that there are many factors contrib!ting to these fail!res, factors li e nationalism, ideology and p!rs!it of personal glory$ Professionalism is definitely NO+ one of these factors$ No# lets loo at the verb phrase %detract from&$ It means diminish, ma e less impressive$ Professionalism means that sport is no longer the privilege of an elite minority #ho do not need to earn an income$ +his !sed to be the !nfair, !nsporting sit!ation$ Professionalism enables many people to compete at a higher level in sports beca!se they are openly and honestly paid$ +hey do not need a private income to have the time to practice and reach a higher level$ Nor do they have to resort to involvement in dishonest, !nsportsmanli e sham amate!rism$ +he ideals of professionalism are also fo!nd in other #al s of life #here they also enhance sportsmanship or fair play$ Professionalism does not diminish sportsmanship$ It is simple logic that great s ill and high standards enhance fair play, honesty and e*cellence$

3irst spea ers speech Good afternoon, 'ho is more admirable, Michael /ordan or God( 2 s!rvey cond!cted on 455 2merican indergarten children sho#s their preference$ Michael /ordan first, God second, if l!c y$ 'hat ma es them admire this professional football player( His phenomenal performance in game 4 of last years N)2 3inals #hen he displayed the loftiest heights of sportsmanship$ ,espite s!ffering from diarrhea and fl!, he played and played to s!pport his teammates and thrilled the paying a!dience$ 2t the end of the game he co!ld barely stand$ Michael /ordan also said, %I am no longer so concerned abo!t money altho!gh it is important$ 2s a professional player, I am an integral part of the game$ I cannot abandon my love for the sport$& It is crystal clear that his professionalism has by no means detracted his sportsmanship$ On the contrary, he has enhanced it$ Professionalism, besides enhancing sportsmanship in an individ!al player, also promotes the virt!es in the vie#ers$ 'hat ma es +iger 'oods an international icon( 6es, e*cellence, yo!th and ethnicity, b!t hard as it may be to imagine, he is m!ch more$ In an age of commercially hyped, trash"tal ing, in"yo!r"face sports star, he is someone #ho combines great athleticism #ith decency, politeness, respect, in short, sportsmanship$ 'oods pride does not e*tend to the braggart denigration of the competition and the na ed promotion of self$ He is a paragon, a gentleman athlete that has to!ched many peoples hearts #ith his gracio!sness$ )y the #ay, he is a professional$ Sporting behavior and professionalism does not lie only in decent attit!de to#ards a game$ So yo! #ish to con7!er the 3rench Open my friend( 2nd I too, #hat a fine thing that #o!ld be8 )!t first mar the conditions and the conse7!ences of being professional, and then set to #or $ 6o! #ill have to p!t yo!rself !nder discipline, to eat by r!le, to e*ercise at the appointed ho!r, li e it or not, in cold and heat$ +hen in the conflict itself yo! are li ely to dislocate yo!r #rist or t#ist yo!r an le, or to be severely thrashed, and above all these things, to be defeated$ +o meet the basic

re7!irements of being a professional, to #illingly p!t yo!rself !nder this dr!dgery, believe me, this is sportsmanship all right$ 2dmittedly, there are bad boys and girls on the battlefield$ 2ndre 2gassi and ,eion Sanders have mastered this very l!crative chest"beating glory see ing$ ,ennis -odman has ta en it to his concl!sion #ith his groin" ic ing, body"piercing anarchism$ +he bad boys, ho#ever, did not transform into monsters once they t!rned professional$ 2ccording to /ohn Mc0nroes coach, he #as notorio!s as an amate!r at playing tennis instit!ted #ith his favorite 9clasp:; oh, Id better not say it here$ )!t apparently, his professionalism didnt aggravate his behavior, he #as already as bad as can be$ )ad boys sa# bad manners and 7!ic tempers as the tic et to celebrity$ +his is beyond professionalism$

Second spea ers speech Good afternoon, <!ite on the contrary, professionalism can in fact enhance and promote sportsmanship$ 3or e*ample, in sports, r!les and penalties are m!ch stricter in professional competitions #hen compared to amate!r ones to enco!rage fair play$ May I as if a higher level of fair play detracts from sportsmanship$ S!rely it enhances sportsmanship$ 2 professional body also strictly monitors the participants, and disciplinary actions are ta en on professionals #ho fail to reach the standards of professionalism$ =ets loo at the e*ample of ,octor )ristols e*ample of responsibility to#ards a professional body$ 2gain may I as #hether maintaining the 7!alities and honorable cond!ct of a professional is detracting from or enhancing sportsmanship( Some people have earned the title of professional, thro!gh the standards, attit!des and 7!alities that they have in their respective fields$ In other #ords, the stat!s, and respect that professionals gain reflects tr!st#orthiness, honesty, dependability, and the capability to f!lfill the responsibilities and demands of some professions, #hich is: sportsmanship$ So yo! see, being a professional is all abo!t

having sportsmanship$ Ho# on earth, then, can professionalism detract from sportsmanship if being sporting is #hat yo! need to be 7!alified as a professional8 It is !ndeniable that personal glory is often present in a professional athlete, b!t does this necessarily mean that it m!st ta e one to s!ch an e*treme point that he chooses to violate the r!les of his sport( On the contrary, one #o!ld aim at a higher standard of sportsmanship in order to achieve more pop!larity, approval, stat!s and even money$ 'hat personal glory has ,ennis -ochman gained for his !nimpressive display of sportsmanship: a notorio!s rep!tation and a drop in salary is all hes gained8 2gain, loo at the personal glory +iger 'oods has gained for his gen!inely higher standard of sportsmanship$ +he press!re, attention and e*pectations that professionals are !nder means that their livelihood depends on ho# sporting they are$ +hey cant afford dirty play thats going to affect their livelihood$ +he fact is that dirty play does not b!ild !p as yo! cross the line bet#een amate!rism and professionalism$

S!mming !p speech of the captain 3ive min!tes is not s!fficient time to clarify the misconceptions of the affirmative side, b!t Ill try to do it #ith professionalism and sportsmanship$ 3irst of all, the ey #ord %professionalism&$ O!r opponents have confined the interpretation of the #ord to the practice of paying players #ho participate in certain sports$ )!t #e cant deny that professional bodies, professional trainers and professional no#ledge are also a form of professionalism, and indeed, this form of professionalism strengthens fairness and e*cellence$ +his point has been thoro!ghly elaborated and reinforced by my team members$ Second, the other ey #ord %sportsmanship&$ O!r opponents have t#o problems here$ One problem is their fail!re to !nderstand that getting to ones pea ability is a form of sportsmanship$ O!r team has ill!strated

this point laborio!sly thro!gho!t this debate$ +he other problem is their fail!re to see that sportsmanship is #ell and alive in professional sports$ /!st to 7!ote t#o recent e*amples$ In the >??@ Semi"finals for the 3rench open, even tho!gh the chair"en"pire said the ball #as o!t, Aarlos Moya insisted that it #as in$ 2ll he #anted #as a fair game$ In the 3inals, 2le* Aorre.a #as defeated by Moya$ Instead of flinging his rac et in anger and disappointment, he leapt over the net to his opponent and congrat!lated him, saying, %Im so glad yo! #on even tho!gh it meant I had to lose$& Isnt that sportsmanship demonstrated by professional players( +hird, the opposing team has 7!oted evidence of professional sportsmen cheating in order to #in$ =et m# remind yo! that cheating and fo!l play are not the monopoly of professional players$ Many amate!rs are fo!nd g!ilty of dirty play$ 'e sho!ld not be so biased as to say that honesty and fairness are alien 7!alities to professional players$ +o s!m !p, professionalism enhances rather than diminishes sportsmanship$ Professional sportsmen, #ith the pay they receive, can afford the time to concentrate on sports as a career, and th!s they can perform to the best of their ability$ +hey are less li ely to brea the r!les beca!se of heavy penalties and reperc!ssions on their careers$ +hey are more li ely to behave sportingly to live !p to the title of professional, and they #o!ld also aim at a higher standard of sportsmanship in order to gain more pop!larity, approval, stat!s and money$ Professional bodies lay do#n r!les to promote sportsmanship, and ens!re that fairness is done to all sportsmen$ Professional trainers help sportsmen strive to#ards even higher standards in sports, even brea ing records$ 'e have also given evidence that professional sportsmen do practice sportsmanship, and if sportsmanship is declining, it is d!e to other factors$ Professionalism is certainly NO+ a factor$ ,ear opponents, open yo!r eyes and loo aro!nd B 2rent the trainers of o!r teams professional teachers( 2rent the ad.!dicators professionals in the field of 0nglish lang!age training( 'e have no do!blt abo!t o!r professional teachers helping !s to perform to the best of o!r ability$ 'e have no do!bt abo!t o!r ad.!dicators ens!ring fairness in this debate$ +heir standards are those of professionals$ 'e also have no do!bt abo!t !s debaters behaving #ith generosity and co!rtesy, #hether #e #in or

not$ Here is an e*ample of professionalism enhancing sportsmanship, bro!ght to yo! live$