I figured there is no time better than the present to touch of the drive and story of an Olympic athlete. I think we all know by now, being an Olympian takes much more than an occasional practice. Being an Olympian takes commitment, determination, drive, and natural ability. These athletes practice for hours on end. Then, when they are done, they go to sleep and wake up to do it all over again. Training is nothing less that extreme. Anything other than being the best is not acceptable, because no one goes to the Olympic games with out the desire to bring home gold. Every athlete dreams of being an Olympian, and every Olympian dreams of being recognized as the best... to be positively reinforces with a gold circle draped from their neck.
An Olympic athlete must have full control of everything in his or her life. It is important to regulate their diet to only the most physically productive food groups. Things like alcohol and candy are very rare in an olympic athletes training program. Emotional relationships are many times placed on hold because of the need for focus these athletes experience everyday. It seems like large sacrifices for an olympic appearance which will most likely last no longer than 5 minutes. What makes the sacrifice worth it?
Take Olympian, Seth Wescott as an example. Wescott approached a member of the press at the beginning of the day and asked her to hold on to an American flag for him. He said that he would need it at the end of the day when he wins gold. Typically, this would seem like a rather bold move, especially in a competition as fierce as the Olympics. However, the flag had more meaning than just the mark of victory. The flag had been draped over the coffin of his Grandfather, who was a WWII veteran. Wescott, who was behind for the majority of the race, said that having that flag waiting for him made all of the difference in the race. He wanted to make everyone proud of him. He had planned to drape that flag around him, so accepting anything less than a win was not an option.
Wescott was motivated internally and externally. His self-esteem was strong enough to carry him through the process of preparation. He knew what he could accomplish. If Wescott had any doubt in his ability he wouldn't have handed his grandfathers flag to the member of the press, but he knew what he could do. He knew what he had been conditioned for and what needed to happen to bare his grandfathers flag.
Wescott came from behind to win the race in the last second, and immediately grabbed the flag and raised it to the sky.
How to do you think Seth Wescott's end goal effected the actual race? Do you think that because the flag was at the end of the race he felt as though he had to win?
http://mysearch.ph/beijingolympics/makes-olympic-athlete.htm (what it takes to be an olympian)
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/35419011/ns/today-today_in_vancouver/ (Wescott's story)
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