Sportsmanship is Alive and Well in Sunapee and Newport

A wonderful act of sportsmanship was on display earlier this week involving the cheerleading squads representing Sunapee and Newport High Schools.

Sunapee's cheerleading team was named the victor in the Division IV state high school spirit championship. They got the award, posed for pictures, and all was right in their world.

That is until their coach checked the scores again and realized they didn't add up. Sunapee didn't win. In fact, it was Newport's squad that should have received the trophy.

Well, Tuesday, they did. When the error was discovered, Sunapee was asked by the New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association to return the trophy and medals to the NHIAA. What Sunapee did was way beyond that. They delivered the trophy and medals in person.

In a quote from a story in the Valley News;

“That’s absolutely awesome,” said Jeffrey Collins, the NHIAA’s executive director, who explained that a clerical error was made while scores were being entered into a computer. “It’s an unbelievable display of sportsmanship.”

I imagine the fans of both schools are rightfully proud of the class that was shown during these recent events. It's a life teaching moment about not taking what's not yours, and the results are sleeping soundly at night knowing you did the right thing.