By Tom Orsborn, Sports reporter | San Antonio Express-News, 2024-04-20 08:49:23

由Gemini Pro人工智能翻译，译文内容可能不准确或不完整，以原文为准。


作为 NBA 全联盟范围内提高对自闭症认识的举措的一部分，格雷格·波波维奇和其他教练在两场比赛中穿上了定制的耐克 Air Force 1 球鞋。

马刺队球迷马丁·克罗格尔虽然在丹麦相隔 5300 英里，却感觉教练格雷格·波波维奇最近在比赛后对自闭症接受发表的评论是为了他而发表的。

“如果我将来能亲自感谢那位先生，这将成为我感谢清单中的首要任务，”50 岁的 IT 顾问克罗格尔在 X 上写道，X 以前称为 Twitter。

克罗格尔在 48 岁时被诊断出患有阿斯伯格综合征，这是一种自闭症形式。

“忘掉胜利和冠军头衔吧，那只是比赛，”在听到 NBA 历史胜场最多的教练对包容性的信息后，克罗格尔写道，“看清人们的本质，并利用你的平台做好事，这才是最终最重要的。”

4 月 7 日在与费城队的比赛中，作为 NBA 推广自闭症接受月努力的一部分，波波维奇在主场比赛期间穿着耐克定制的 Air Force 1 运动鞋，上面印着彩色的无限符号，上面写着“包容”和“全力以赴”的字样。他谈到了重视自闭症谱系障碍人群的必要性。

“我们只是想让人们更多地了解自闭症，”他说，“我甚至不知道它如此普遍。我想每 37 个孩子中就有一个被诊断出患有自闭症，这比我想知道的要多得多。但我认为这是一种在某些方面被误解的疾病。就好像它是一件‘坏事’，或者那个人是‘另类’。现在，那个人只是与众不同，确实值得我们关注、支持并意识到他们有其他优势，或者优势用的不对，但其他特质让他们变得特别。

“所以给​​他们爱和支持真的很重要，希望人们明白他们需要被包容。他们不能被排斥为‘另类’。他们需要被包容和支持。”

自闭症倡导者对 75 岁的波波维奇表现出的同情和支持表示赞赏。

“这真是太棒了，”自闭症社区网络首席执行官蒂芙尼·弗雷舍说，这是一个圣安东尼奥非营利组织，根据其网站，“通过为缺乏途径的人提供早期诊断并教育和授权社区来支持他们，最大限度地发挥自闭症儿童的潜能”。

“格雷格·波波维奇是圣安东尼奥的英雄。当然，让他公开支持或爱那些需要我们支持的孩子和成年人，真是太棒了。我们机构对此表示衷心的感谢。”

自闭症谱系障碍 (ASD) 是一种从轻度到严重的疾病，通常表现为社交障碍、沟通困难、重复行为和其他问题。根据疾病控制和预防中心的数据，自闭症在美国每 36 个儿童中就影响一个，每 45 个成年人中就影响一个。

波波维奇和其他 NBA 教练响应犹他爵士队助理教练斯科特·莫里森及其妻子苏珊娜的努力，在他们的儿子马克斯于 2022 年被诊断出患有自闭症后提高人们对自闭症的认识，于是积极响应自闭症接纳月。

“在赛季开始之前，我们只知道我们想做点什么来帮助或做出贡献，”莫里森告诉美国今日报，“我们只是想接触到我认识的一些教练，看看谁愿意穿这些球鞋来突出自闭症。”


作为 NBA 全联盟范围内提高对自闭症认识的举措的一部分，格雷格·波波维奇和其他教练在两场比赛中穿上了定制的耐克 Air Force 1 球鞋。

这些运动鞋由教练签名，并拍卖以筹集 To The Max 基金会的资金，该基金会是由莫里森夫妇创立的非营利组织，旨在支持自闭症人士及其家人。

圣安东尼奥儿童医院自闭症项目主任梅丽莎·D·斯沃博达博士说，听到波波维奇引起人们对自闭症的关注，真是“太棒了”。

但她表示，他的评论也强化了她这样的信念：公众仍然需要更多地了解自闭症。

“当我刚开始培训时，我告诉人们我将与自闭症儿童一起工作，他们就像，‘有艺术才华？比如他们会画画？’“斯沃博达说，“没有人知道自闭症是什么意思。谢天谢地，快进十五到二十年后，现在自闭症变得更加普遍，但你仍然会听到像波波维奇教练那样的人说，‘哦，我不知道自闭症这么常见。’

“自闭症是如此普遍，以至于出现了神经多样性的真正大趋势，这正是他的本意，即（自闭症）可能是一种正常的表现，尤其是一些功能更高的人。有些人可能称他们为怪人，但他们在这里有一席之地。他们做了一些其他人不具备的技能。这确实关乎包容和支持，以确保每个人，无论能力如何，都能找到自己想做的事情中所扮演的角色和意义。”

自闭症社区网络通过帮助家庭更好地了解自闭症来实现这一目标。

“当家庭中有人患有自闭症时，每个人都会在自己的家庭中应对自闭症问题，”弗雷舍说，“我们试图教会他们孩子的优点，如何与孩子沟通，以及如何在家庭中减轻压力……帮助家庭更好地与孩子沟通，从而减轻孩子的压力。”

斯沃博达希望在自闭症接受月中，不会忽视那些“在疾病谱系的严重一端需要大量支持”的人。

“神经多样性运动的重点在于谱系中较高水平的人群，但我认为我们必须确保我们包括谱系中的每个人，”她说。

丹麦马刺球迷克罗格尔称赞波波维奇在 X 上发表的评论，他也被诊断出患有注意力缺陷多动障碍 (ADHD) 和阿斯伯格综合征。

阿斯伯格综合征是自闭症谱系的一种疾病，通常功能较高。根据 Nationwide Children's Hospital 的网站，患有这种疾病的人可能在社交方面表现笨拙，并且对特定主题有全神贯注的兴趣。

“这改变了我的人生，我突然意识到我现在可以放下自童年以来一直带着的内疚和愤怒，”克罗格尔通过 X 上的直接消息向 Express-News 写信，谈及他对诊断情况。

“我开始接受这样的事实，虽然我实际上与周围大多数人不同，但这并不意味着我身上有什么问题。我只是：不同。”

克罗格尔写道，对家人、朋友和同事“非常开放”地谈论自己的诊断是一种解放的体验。

“人们应该知道与我这样的人相处或与有相同困难的孩子相处需要付出多少努力，”他写道，“看到我妻子和我从我们认识的人那里得到的反应令人倍感鼓舞。即便如此，我仍然可以在外出时在一定程度上掩饰我的神经分歧，所以我仍然听到人们谈论‘每个人都希望现在给他们的孩子确诊’以及质疑我们面临困难的合理性。

“这就是为什么 Pop 的评论让我感动。作为一个同类教练的儿子，同样粗暴但关怀，这可能不足为奇，我对他已经很尊敬了。对于像我这样的人来说，一个拥有如此崇高地位的人有机会教育人们一些像记住包括我们这样简单但有意义的事情一样宝贵。

“他提醒我们，我们需要爱和支持，这真的击中了我，因为我知道尽管我在这方面很幸运，但我知道太多人没有我这么幸运。”

原文如下：

Popovich's support of autism acceptance reached global audience

[Image] Gregg Popovich and other coaches across the league wore custom Nike Air Force 1 shoes for a pair of games as part of an NBA-wide initiative to raise awareness for autism.

Spurs fan Martin Krøger, although 5,300 miles away in Denmark, had the sense coach Gregg Popovich's comments after a recent game in support of autism acceptance were made for his benefit.

"If I could ever thank that man in person, this would be at the top of my list of things to thank him for," Krøger, a 50-year-old IT consultant, wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Krøger was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, a form of autism, when he was 48.

"Forget the wins and the titles, that's just a game," Krøger wrote after hearing the NBA's all-time winningest coach's message of inclusion. "Seeing people for who they are and using your platform for doing good works, that's what really matters in the end."

After wearing Nike custom Air Force 1 sneakers sporting a colorful infinity symbol with the words "Inclusion" and "To The Max" during a home game against Philadelphia on April 7 as part of the NBA's efforts to promote Autism Acceptance Month, Popovich spoke about the need to value those living on the autism spectrum.

"We're just trying to bring some awareness to autism," he said. "I didn't even realize it was that prolific. I guess it's one out of every 37 children is diagnosed with autism, and that's a lot more than I think I knew. But it's a malady I think is misunderstood in some ways. It's like it's a 'bad thing' or that person is the 'other'. Now, that person is just different and really deserves our attention, our support and a realization they have other advantages, or advantages is the wrong word, but other traits that make them special.

"So giving them love and support is really important and hopefully people will understand they need to be included. They can't be put aside as 'others'. They need to be included and supported."

Autism advocates applauded the empathy and support shown by Popovich, 75.

"It’s absolutely wonderful," said Tiffany Fresher, CEO of the Autism Community Network, a San Antonio nonprofit that works to "maximize the potential of children with autism by providing early diagnosis for those with limited access and educating and empowering the community to support them," according to its website.

"Gregg Popovich is a San Antonio hero. And certainly having him publicly support or love on these kids and adults that need our support is amazing. A huge thank you from our agency."

Autism spectrum disorder, or ASD, is a condition that ranges from mild to serious and is typically marked by social awkwardness, communication difficulties, repetitive behaviors and other problems. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Protection, autism affects one in every 36 children and one in 45 adults in the United States.

Popovich and other NBA coaches embraced Autism Acceptance Month in response to an effort by Utah Jazz assistant coach Scott Morrison and his wife Susanne to raise awareness after their son Max was diagnosed with autism in 2022.

"Before the season started, we just knew we wanted to do something to try and help or contribute," Morrison told USA Today. "And we had the idea to just maybe tap into the handful of coaches I knew just to see who would be interested in wearing the shoes as a way to highlight autism."

[Image] Gregg Popovich and other coaches across the league wore custom Nike Air Force 1 shoes for a pair of games as part of an NBA-wide initiative to raise awareness for autism.

The sneakers were signed by the coaches and auctioned off to raise funds for the To The Max Foundation, a nonprofit founded by the Morrisons to support autistic individuals and their families.

Dr. Melissa D. Svoboda, director of the autism program at the Children’s Hospital of San Antonio, said it was "amazing" to hear Popovich draw attention to autism.

But she said his comments also reinforced her belief the public still needs more education about autism.

"When I first started my training, I told people I was going to work with autistic children, and they were like, 'Artistic? Like they draw?' " Svoboda said. "Nobody knew what autistic meant. Thank goodness, fast forward, fifteen, twenty years later and now it is so much more common, but you still have people like coach Popovich saying, 'Oh, I didn’t know it was this common.'

"It’s so common that there is this real big movement toward neurodiversity, which is really what he is getting at, that maybe (autism) is a spectrum of normal, especially with some of these higher functioning individuals. Some people may call them quirky, but they have a place here. There are some amazing things they do that other people don’t have as a skill set. And it really is about inclusion and support to make sure everybody, no matter ability or disability, finds a placed and a meaning in what they want to do."

The Autism Community Network works toward fulfilling that goal by helping families gain a better understanding of autism.

"When somebody in the family has autism, everyone is dealing with autism in their family," Fresher said. "We are trying to teach them their child’s strengths and how to communicate with their child and how to reduce stress in their family...to help the family better communicate with the child, so the child’s stress is reduced as well."

Svoboda is hopeful that during Autism Acceptance Month people "on the more severe end of the spectrum who require a lot of support" aren't forgotten.

"A lot of this neurodiversity movement is centered on people at the higher end of the spectrum, but I think we have to make sure we are including everybody on every part of the spectrum," she said.

Krøger, the Danish Spurs fan who praised Popovich's comments on X, was also diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), along with Asperger's syndrome. 

Asperger's syndrome is a condition on the autism spectrum with generally higher functioning. People with the condition may be socially awkward and have an all-absorbing interest in specific topics, according to the website for the Nationwide Children's Hospital.

"It was a life-changing experience, suddenly realizing I could now let go of all of the guilt and anger I'd carried around with me since childhood," Krøger wrote to the Express-News in a direct message on X about his diagnosis.

 "I came to accept that while I was in fact different from most of the people around me, that did not mean there was something wrong with me. I was simply that: different."

Krøger wote that being "very open" about his diagnosis with family, friends and colleagues has been a freeing experience.

"People deserved to know how much hard work goes into just living with someone like me or into living with children with the same difficulties," he wrote. " It's been very heartening to see the reactions my wife and I have gotten from people we know. Still, I'm able to mask my neurodivergence somewhat when I'm out in the world and so I still get to hear how people talk about 'everyone wants a diagnosis for their kid these days' and questioning the validity of the difficulties facing us.

"That's why Pop's comments moved me. Being the son of a no-nonsense coach in that same gruff but caring mold, it's probably no surprise I already hold him in high regard. It just means so incredibly much to people like me that a man of his stature takes the opportunity to educate folks on something as simple but meaningful as remembering to include us, even though we're a bit different.

"His reminder that we need love and support really hit home for me, knowing that while I'm fortunate in that regard, I know too many who weren't as lucky as me."

By Tom Orsborn, Sports reporter , via San Antonio Express-News