There are a couple topics that are fighting in my head today...so first of all I will begin with something that happened this morning,something that has happened before, and something that will be happening in the future as well...
This morning everything was as usual-first some weightlifting and after that we got in the pool. But the coach had to leave earlier( that does not happen very often to her, but you know sometimes everybody needs to make an exception), so we started the practice with her but we had to finish it by ourselves.... Big deal! That does not make any difference to me. I will swim either if she is there or she isn't! But does everybody think that way too? No!
Let me start with a little pre-history. Last year in the summer my coach had to go to a competition out of the country with her daughter.So she wrote everybody all the practices we were supposed to swim for the next three weeks(I have the most amazing coach as I said before. Every day we have two practices, we are about 13people and she writes a different practice for everybody depending on the stroke you swim and the qualities you need to develop, and your weak places....). So she handed a bunch of practices to all of us.
Day one without her...as I said we are about thirteen people...and what was the sight at the pool-11people are staying in the corner of the pool giggling and chatting around and two are swimming... Well I hope there is no need to tell you I was one of the "enthusiasts" that were swimming. And who was the other one? He is one of my teammates. He is an amazing swimmer, and he is preparing for the Olympic games in London in 2012. Hope he makes it. He totally deserves it... but let me keep the story going... day 2...nothing has changed, besides this time people are getting late for the chatting corner...oh, how said...they maybe missed some important news! Hope they could make up with the missed news to the end of the "practice"...so that keeps on repeating on the next day, and the day after that...and like that till the day my coach returned.
And during that time they were always saying...how could we be swimming when the coach is not there. They explained how they did not have the motivation needed and all those stupid bull***t excuses! Needless to say when the competition came all of them swam way below what they were supposed to and see the boy I was talking about earlier did simply AMAZING! Are you still asking why we are swimming?
So today was something like a flashback from the summer described yesterday. I think my coach has just turned her back to the swimming pool when almost everybody stopped swimming and formed the well familiar chatting corner. This time besides me and my the other guy there were three more people swimming! One of them is also preparing for the Olympics and the other two...I was amazed they swam. They are brother and sister. She is about 12 and he is 9 years old. They could simply take the example of the chatting corner participants... but they didn't! So I am really surprised and proud of them, that they did not give in to the temptation of stopping.
So as the others were chatting, one of them told me " I admire you that you are swimming when Teddy(the coach) is not here". I wanted to tell her that to me it does not matter if Teddy is there or not, because I am not swimming for her, I am swimming for myself, because I feel the joy and happiness of swimming...The coach is not there to stay and observe and admire your swimming, so why am I supposed to swim for her like she is an audience and came to watch me... Sure I love when my coach is there and tells me what I am doing wrong but when she is not there I will be still swimming...
I have always been surprised when people act like that...and trust me most of the "athletes" I know are just like that! And you know that a true champion is measured by what he does when nobody is watching... and sure you are supposed to swim no matter who is at the pool, you are supposed to practice not only when the coach is there but even before she gets there and after she leaves if you really wanna achieve something... if you don't want...the there are plenty of restaurants you could go and chat!
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