"Murderous Heart" in Sports Competition
In the field of sports competition, athletes compete for victory through the contest of strength, which is the purest and most basic sportsmanship. Sometimes sports competition is not just a duel of strength on the field, more often it will go off the field, and even belittle and deny each other at the level of thought and speech. This phenomenon of "killing people and punishing the heart" means not only killing the opponent's strength, but also completely defeating the opponent ideologically, which is more vicious and thorough than a simple sports contest.
In the 2024 CBA playoffs, an episode between Guangdong men's basketball head coach Du Feng and Liaoning men's basketball head coach Yang Ming is a typical case of the phenomenon of "killing people and punishing hearts" in the sports world. After a game, Du Feng publicly expressed his envy that Yang Ming had the top domestic defenders, forwards and center forwards under him, while he only had a group of young people. This remark is considered to be a "murderous punishment", that is, it is not only a sports contest, but also a complete disparagement and negation of the opponent in thought and speech.
Du Feng's remarks are undoubtedly a great disparagement and negation of his players. Comparing "only a group of young people" with "the best defenders, forwards and centre-forwards in the country" is undoubtedly belittling the quality and level of their own players. This will not only greatly damage the morale of the players, but also create great pressure on their own team in the field of public opinion. This kind of remarks of denying oneself is also denying and belittling the opponent, and the opponent's players are infinitely elevated, so that they are suppressed and defeated ideologically.
This kind of "killing people and punishing hearts" can certainly cause a certain amount of psychological pressure on the opponent, but it is also a harm to one's own team. Degrading one's own players to a 'just bunch of youngsters' will undoubtedly be a huge blow to a player's confidence, which will be a heavy burden in the rest of the game. And over-elevating the opponent will also make your team fall into a suppressed situation psychologically, which will also have a negative impact on the game.
Yang Ming then also gave a connotative response, saying that he was also very envious of Du Feng's group of "dominant" young people. This response is not only a counterattack to Du Feng's "murderous heart", but also a manifestation of mutual respect. Calling an opponent's player "dominant" is undoubtedly recognizing and appreciating the opponent's strength, and this attitude of mutual respect is the spirit of sports competition.
The words of the two sprayed each other, showing some grievances and hatreds between the coaches, but also revealing an attitude of mutual respect. This kind of mutual respect is the proper meaning of sports competition. Only by truly respecting the opponent can you compete on the field and win more weighty victories. And the words like "killing people and punishing the heart" will not only hurt themselves, but also hurt the fairness and justice of sports competition.
The charm of sports competition lies in the fact that the winner is determined through the contest of strength, and should not be polluted by the depreciation and negation of thought and speech. Every athlete and coach should use practical actions to win respect on the field, rather than using "murderous" words to achieve the goal of belittling opponents. Only in this way can sports competition truly show its charm and value.
The phenomenon of "killing people and punishing hearts" is not uncommon in the sports world, but it is a kind of distortion and damage to the spirit of sportsmanship. The essence of sports competition is to compete for victory through the contest of strength, and should not be polluted by the debasement and negation at the level of thought and speech. Every athlete and coach should use practical actions to win respect on the field, rather than using "murderous" words to achieve the goal of belittling opponents. Only in this way can sports competition truly show its charm and value.