Athletes Lying About Age

March 15, 2012

Dear Mr. President,

                My name is Ben. I am a student at Parkway West Middle School in Chesterfield, Missouri. I am writing to you today to share my thoughts on athletes lying about their age.

                I became interested in this issue when I moved to Missouri. When I moved here, everyone talked about Albert Pujols, and some people told me about how he isn't really 36 (or whatever he says). That got me thinking, so I began to research athletes who lie about their age.

                To begin, lying about age is very common for baseball players from the Dominican Republic. From birth, Dominican Republicans take years off their age, so when they are "old enough" to play in the MLB, they are actually older than they say. When a player is older than he says, their team will give them a longer contract because they think they will be with the team for a while. If only more liars are punished, this wouldn't be such an issue, but if these liars aren't punished, then lying may become part of our daily lives.

                Now, this isn't just a problem in the U.S. For instance, Nigeria is banned from playing in all FIFA soccer events because Nigerians will say they are younger than they really are to play in lesser tournaments and win easy prize money. Recently, in an interview, Nigerian soccer star Austin Okocha said, "Most Nigerian footballers fabricate their age… they are ten years older than they say." This just proves the point about players lying about their age.

                Mr. President, I know that you are a sports fan after seeing you at numerous sporting events. I would like you to step in and make lying about your age illegal.

                In conclusion, I would just like to thank you for your hard work as the greatest nation's president.

Sincerely,

Ben

Parkway West Middle School

Chesterfield, Missouri

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