We’ve all seen them, I am sure. You know the ones! From Wikepedia:

A competitor who exhibits poor sportsmanship after losing a game or contest is often called a “sore loser” (those who show poor sportsmanship after winning are typically called “bad winners“).

It goes on to say,”Sore loser behavior includes blaming others for the loss, not accepting responsibility for personal actions that contributed to the defeat, reacting to the loss in an immature or improper fashion, making excuses for the defeat, and citing unfavorable conditions or other petty issues as reasons for the defeat.^[4][5] A bad winner acts in a shallow fashion after his or her victory, such as by gloating about his or her win, rubbing the win in the face(s) of the opponent(s), and lowering the opponent(s)’s self-esteem by constantly reminding the opponent(s) of “poor” performance in comparison (even if the opponent(s) competed well).”

Well… Have you ever seen one of these at a horse show? Nah? Really?

At one Show I watched a rider leave the competition ring on his horse and made his hand into a gun shape and point it between the horse’s ears and made believe to shoot the horse. Just plain bad sportsmanship, right?

Here are a few tips to becoming a gracious winner [source:The Brook Network]

1. Good winners are generous.
2. Good winners have gratitude.
3. Good winners give glory to God.
4.  Good winners do not gloat. They understand they could have been the losers even if they had given an all-out effort. They respect the efforts of others.
5. Good winners are humble. They get an appropriate boost of confidence from the win, but they know enough not to get cocky.
6. Good winners evaluate their performance. They know that every victory has flaws within it, and they don’t miss the opportunity to learn from mistakes they made–even when they have won.
7. Good winners celebrate. Consider the feasts, festivals, and celebrations in Scripture. Celebration is more than a party. It is a way to give thanks, and to affirm hope for the future.
8. Good winners let other people celebrate with them. The joy they see in the faces of others becomes their joy–not as flattery, but as affection. Good winners do not keep their “wins” to themselves.
9. Good winners take time to rest. Whenever any of us have put out full effort to attain a goal, there is nothing wrong with being inactive for a while, both to learn from the “win” and to gain strength again.
10. Good winners get back to work. The “win” of one day is not the same thing as a lifetime of honorable work.

Have you seen gracious winners at horse shows? You can hear them and see them thanking their horses and their “team” for a job well done.

How do you thank your team for a job well done?

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