<p>Having a coach ask for you, I think, would help support your interest in that particular field of athletics. This being said, I don't think it's necessarily any <em>more</em> valuable than being able to similarly demonstrate a love for anything else.</p>
<p>Then again, I don't know much... but don't expect athletics alone to get you into MIT (not that you would, but it's still a safe warning).</p>