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Lessons From Beijing
by Cherie GruenfeldDuring the past seventeen days, I've morphed into someone I hardly recognize. I'm sleep deprived, I keep the TV on all day, I sit at my computer in the middle of the night and I've become an expert on such things as tie-breaking rules in gymnastics, how to pass the baton in a running relay, the population of Jamaica and what the perfect swimmer's body looks like. I believe the term for what I am is "Olympics Junkie" (OJ).
You don't have to be an OJ to have been thrilled and awed by Michael Phelps's achievement or to understand the significance of Dara Torres defying conventional age limits. Everyone could recognize the extraordinary talent of Usain Bolt and feel the heartbreak of the women's softball team.
But looking beyond the obvious stories, I find that there is much I've taken away from these great athletes and their amazing performances that made my 17-day odyssey a worthwhile venture. There were no great new insights, just good reminders of things that all dedicated athletes know but sometimes need to see through another's eyes.
• LaShawn Merritt was part of the relay team that dropped the baton in the semi-finals, thereby depriving them of the opportunity to compete for gold. It was a major disappointment for the USA and an embarrassment for every team member. But a few hours later Merritt came back and posted a resounding win in the individual 400 meter event, going home with the gold. This was a demonstration of something you see frequently in elite athletics – the ability to shake off an error or bad performance and quickly get back in the game. And they come back with total confidence in their ability to perform at a high level, completely ignoring the fact that they have so recently failed to perform.
• Things don't always go as planned and sometimes dreams don't come true. Deena Kastor didn't expect to suffer a stress fracture at mile four of the marathon; Tyson Gay never visualized pulling up with a hamstring injury in the trials, leaving him out of his premier event in Beijing; Asafa Powell certainly never anticipated the yellow and green jersey worn by the Jamacian who broke the 100-meter world record to be on the back of a young fearless kid who lives just down the road from him back on the island. But all these things happened. Each of the athletes handled their frustration and disappointment with grace, understanding that making excuses doesn't change the circumstances. Only continued hard work and persistence will do that.
• The mind-body connection has never been more perfectly demonstrated than in Jason Lezak's anchor leg of the 4x100 swim relay. Lezak had never swum that fast before and probably never will again. But at that moment, he wanted that win and he simply swam "out of his mind." His strong will allowed his body to go beyond its capabilities. It's the equivalent to the mother who lifts the car off her child who is pinned underneath. There's no explanation for how it happens. Lezak's feat was sheer beauty and a thing of joy to watch.
• Big moments sometime dictate big risks. I saw several examples of this:
Constantina Tomescu of Romania broke away from the pack in the women's marathon. She's done that several times before in other races and has faded in the end. But that didn't stop her this time. This was the Olympics and it was going to take a breakaway to win. She took the risk and was rewarded this time with the gold
Several gymnasts added elements in their final routines when they knew it was down to the wire. These added elements had previously been deleted because they were too risky – the athlete hadn't yet mastered them. But on this world stage, with the gold riding on it, the risk was worth taking. Sometimes it pays off and sometimes it doesn't. But, regardless, the athlete can go home knowing he gave it everything he had on that day.
• In every sport I watched, it was clear that there was more at work than raw physical talent. At this level, every athlete is keenly aware of the proper form and technique required in his or her sport and has practiced long hours to make it second nature. These athletes don't practice just to get it right, but to absolutely never get it wrong. For a clear example of that, take a look at the Sports Illustrated underwater camera work that caught Phelps touching the wall .01 of a second before Miloral Cavic from Serbia. The photo clearly shows Phelps pulling off the fingernail-width win with his head down and his body perfectly aligned whereas Cavic had lifted his head and bent back. I'm guessing that Phelps had practiced that touch millions of times, burning it in deeper with ever iteration.
Watching these athletes, cheering for their successes and aching with them when they failed, has reminded me of the all-so-important characteristics of an athlete, beyond physical talent:
• Confidence
• Persistance
• Mental strength
• Willingness to take a risk
• Commitment
And I am reminded that these characteristics describe an athlete who is doing his first Ironman as well as an elite athlete whose performance keeps me riveted to the TV every two years when it's Olympics time. Watching them reinforces what I need to do to perform well in my sport and it gives me hope that perhaps one day I'll have one of those "out of my mind" Lezak-type performances.
Train safe and race fast,
Cherie
Articles from Cherie:
Key Workouts for a Successful Ironman Race Part I - Part II - Key Workouts for a Successful Ironman Race - Analyzing the Last Season to Have a Better Next Season - Setting the 2006 Calendar - Breaking it Down - Something for Nothing - Work + Recovery = Peak Performance - Getting Back in the Game - To Race or Not to Race? - Kona Moments - PERIODIZATION Ð MAKE IT WORK FOR YOU - New Age Group Record at IM Arizona - Critical Success Factors for a Great Ironman - The Ironman Run: It's a Mind Game - Remain a Competitive Racer - What's This Race All About - To Every Workout There is a Purpose - My 2008 Resolutions - Looking Forward to the Future - How About the Kids? - Other Kids - Become An Ironman - Beware the Pitfalls To have racing success Back to the Future Buffalo Springs Lake 70.3 Circling the Drain Lessons From Beijing From the Desk Of Cherie Gruenfeld Ironman – Now That You've Committed It's All About the Run
