Thomas Junta and Michael Costin are two names that have been in the news recently. If you didn’t know, Junta is the hockey dad in Massachusetts who just got six to 10 years in prison for involuntary manslaughter.

Costin was the hockey coach who scuffled with Junta and was killed during the fight. And all because of a youth hockey practice.

Recently, I had a brush of sorts with something slightly related to the case described above. I am actively involved as a competitor and referee in tae kwon do, a martial art in which kicks and punches are used to score points in full contact sparring.

In November, the United States Tae kwon do Union implemented a new safety rule for children.

In short, the rule prohibits competitors six to 11 years of age from attempting attacks to the head.

Medical studies have proven that the risk of head injury is increasingly greater the younger the child. There has been some debate over whether this rule change is a good idea, for a lot of different reasons.

Granted, I don’t think the answer is elimination of head shots entirely, but I do believe it is necessary to protect responsible families from the lunacy of those parents who like to live vicariously through their kids.

I’m referring here to the parents who stand on the sidelines yelling, “Take his head off!” or “Knock him out!” And let me tell you; the number of such parents is increasing.

The rate of this increase may become steeper now that tae kwon do is an Olympic sport. And this just goes to show that even in martial arts, where courtesy, integrity and self-control are guiding tenets, there is no immunity from poor sportsmanship.

Tae kwon do is going through something a lot of other competitive sports have already gone through.

In Hollywood, Fla., an assistant baseball coach allegedly punched an umpire and broke his jaw.

In Torrance, Calif., a high school football coach told police he was attacked by the relatives of a senior running back on the team who had been relegated to a lesser role with the emergence of a younger player.

If I wanted, I could probably go on forever with stories of violence among adults at youth sports events.

In reality, for kids at a young age, their parents control probably 80-90 percent of their interest in sports activities, especially those of the challenging, competitive (and eventually profitable) variety.

But there needs to be something done to control this over zealous behavior, actions taken both on and off the field.

Certainly we can afford to lower the profile of youth sports because they are simply getting too much attention at this point.

In an age where three of the top four picks in the NBA draft can’t legally buy a six-pack of Miller Lite, that might be understandable, but it is certainly not acceptable.

Youth sports coordinators, officials and coaches need to take the warning signs a little more seriously.

Both Costin and Junta in the hockey case had extensive histories of criminal behavior. Costin, with a history of incarcerations, was the team’s coach – so I guess you get what you pay for.

Coaches and officials often get a sneak preview of over zealous parents, but we’ve become so accustomed to seeing such behavior as “just pushing the child to be his or her best.”

It’s time to review that verdict.

Remember the good old days, when kids games were fun? When the coaches were only there to make sure the completely inept kids got to play? No stats, no standings and most importantly, no Danny Almonte?

There’s a big problem when teams start going to foreign lands to recruit ringers for Little League.

Parental irresponsibility on our youth sports fields, courts and rinks is a steep and very slippery slope and the slide is already way out of control.

Clearly we have lost touch with the essence of what youth sports are supposed to be, and the violence will continue if adults don’t learn to back off and let kids be kids – just let them play.

Not “win,” not “compete,” let them PLAY.

Emeka Anyanwu is a senior in electrical engineering from Ames.