The summer of 2012 marked the return of the Olympics to London. As a sport junkie, my excitement for this event was uncontainable; I envisioned myself sitting in a stadium cheering on the world’s best athletes as they competed for a chunk of gold to hang around their necks. However, it was not to be. After missing out on the initial release of tickets, I embarked on a quest to find some from other sources, but still came away empty handed. Understandably, I was disappointed. So when a friend of mine offered me a spare ticket to watch Paralympic basketball, I eagerly jumped at this chance.
Having never attended or watched a wheelchair basketball match, I was completely unsure as to what I should expect. Basketball generally is played at an extremely high pace, with great shows of flair and tactical movement. Silently, I questioned whether these players would be able come close to replicating the play of able bodied athletes. But when the game began, all my doubts were dispelled, and I was thoroughly surprised. The fact that these individuals were in a wheelchair did nothing to hinder their game; they sped up and down the court at great speeds, with all the flashy passes and great shooting present in Olympic basketball really at the forefront of this performance.
The moment that really got me thinking was when one of the players was knocked out of his chair. In one swift movement, he managed to flip both himself and his wheelchair into the right position, to rapturous applause from the crowd. In a sporting culture where the tiniest knocks will send grown men rolling and writhing on the ground, this act was refreshing. These athletes were quite simply, amazing. They really deserved that superhuman tag given to them. Take David Weir for example: his 4 Gold medal outing at the paralympics was a monumental achievement. But he also holds 2 Golds, 2 silvers and 2 bronze medals from previous paralympics. As well as various world and European titles. As as well as 6 London marathon titles. If you can name an able bodied athlete who has completed such a feat, please inform me because my research came up trumps.
Now I do not mean to take any shine off the paralympians, but amidst all their greatness, a darker side exists. Several of you may recall an incident involving a British cyclist by the name of Jody Cundy, in which at the start of a race his bike slipped accidently, causing a false start. He calmly, and with great decorum raised his hand indicating what had happened – presumably assuming since it was not his fault, he would be given another chance. But this was not the case. He was delivered the news of his disqualification and the situation quickly escalated. He began a foul mouthed rant, questioning whether he’d wasted the past 4 years of his life, angrily throwing his water bottle and had to be forcefully led away when he failed to calm down.
For those brief seconds he forgot he was I’m the public eye, he let go of any restraints on his emotions and fully expressed them. In those few seconds, he was human. Which is indeed what paralympians are: Humam beings.
They aren’t any different to us. The difference is in their attitude: they possess great mental toughness, show a real determination and are constantly driven.
It’s tough being a high level athlete, in the same way that it’s tough to do anything at a high level. Early morning workouts, even earlier nights, constantly watching what you eat, missing fun outings with your friends, and having to dig deep to motivate yourself – coupled with a disability? That’s a serious uphill strugle. Yet they still battle through it. They still make it to the big stage. It’s all to do with mindset; and this attitude is available to us all. But we must tune ourselves to access it.
You see these individuals in no way allow themselves to be limited. If anything, any deficit presented to them – in this case, their disability – spurs them on to work harder. We must do the same. Allowing setbacks and shortcomings to prevent us from achieving our goals and dreams will leave us stuck. It is like saying you want to leave the house, but you cannot because it’s perpetually raining and refuse to get wet. If you let the rain stop you however, you’ll end up stuck in the house forever. All you need to do is improvise: just use what you have. Call a cab, borrow a friends coat or just order you own. Just because you can’t do things your way, doesn’t mean they cannot be done.
There’s no telling when life will deal us a bad card. A close friend of mine was on the brink of signing a professional basketball contract – when he tore his ACL, a nightmare injury in any sport. He watched his dreams crumble in front of him, and at this point, he could’ve easily folded, packed it in and given up. But he dug in. He stuck with it. Not a day goes by when I don’t see him in the gym, making slow but consistent progress, and ensuring he’s stronger upon return. Teams and scouts have taken notice of this and now his prospects are better than before.
The next time you take some hit, don’t think about how far away you are from your goal. Accept what has happened, and move on. Don’t see your situation as a hole you have fallen into, but rather a step on an entirely different path. Although this may not have been your intended direction, if your destination remains unchanged, if you keep those same goals, you will still get there. And when you succeed…it’ll be so worth it.