“SPORT is the most important of the least important things in life” is one of those lines I have heard countless times over the years working in the sector.
It is usually said with a wry smile, as if sport is simply a passion, a hobby, or a welcome distraction from the serious business of life.
But I am not sure that does it justice. In fact, I think the world could learn a thing or two from sport.
Look around and it often feels as though conflict has become the default setting. Across the world, disagreement too easily turns into division, and even closer to home, many of the issues we face seem to pull people into opposing corners.
Yet sport, at its best, continues to offer something different. It brings communities and countries together. It creates pride without shutting others out. It reminds us that competition and respect can sit side by side.
Jersey Sport CEO, Dave Kennedy
I saw that first-hand recently at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where 76 Commonwealth Games Associations came together to compete fairly, respectfully and passionately.
For Jersey, it was a powerful reminder of what sport can do. It gave our island a level platform on which to stand alongside sporting giants such as Australia and South Africa.
And when Filip Nowacki (right) delivered excellence on that stage, little Jersey had earned its seat at the table.
Then came the moment the Jersey flag was raised above everyone else. Around me, the Jersey crowd did what any self-respecting island crowd would do, quickly checked their phones to remind themselves of the words to Beautiful Jersey.
Chests were puffed out, voices joined in, and there was an unmistakable sense of island pride. The reaction on social media showed that the feeling travelled far beyond Glasgow.
It was felt all the way back home.
At the same time as the Commonwealth Games was taking place, another example was unfolding closer to home.
Rugby clubs from Jersey and Guernsey joined forces in a superb fixture to defeat Poland, a country with a population of more than 37 million people.
It was a timely reminder that rivalries can be set aside for the greater good.
Although, if the Guernsey players travelled here by ferry, that may have been the most impressive achievement of all.
And just recently, I visited Western Miniature Rifle Club to see a superb project being delivered in partnership with the charity Eyecan.
By adapting rifles so that participants can target through sound rather than sight, people with sight impairment are now able to take part in the sport.
It was a simple but powerful example of inclusion in action, not as a slogan, but as something practical, thoughtful and genuinely life-enhancing.
Sport isn’t perfect, of course, and there will always be those who let the side down through a lack of values.
But at its best, it still shows us something worth holding on to, that people can compete without contempt, celebrate difference without division, and come together around a shared sense of pride and purpose.
In a world that often feels short of common ground, perhaps sport is not so unimportant after all.
