More on the Twenty Four Hour Athlete
I think many of you have completely missed the point. The Twenty Four Athlete is not about producing champions or future professionals or even getting Division One scholarship it is about a total commitment to excellence. The post came about after Monday’s workout with The Venice Girls Volleyball team. It was obvious they had not done the work while I was gone. Some had put on weight and there were some outside of volleyball lifestyle issues regarding poor choices being made. I really do not think any of these girls will get DI scholarships, for them it is about being the best they can be. For me it is about being the best I can be and for any one I work with at any level to strive to be the best they can be, the only way to do this is by being a “24 Hour” athlete. When they are done playing they can be completely satisfied that they did everything in their power to be fulfill their potential. Sacrifice and making choices are all part of life. Today we try to make it easy for athletes, by making it easy we allow shortcuts. Eventually that catches up and it will catch up in life and in sport. Do not kid yourself. I will not apologize to anyone for being demanding. We all have families, leisure time, health issues, but at the end of the day we must put everything in perspective. Training for sport is not about winning it is about striving to win, there can only be one winner on the scoreboard but everyone can win in life.
posted by Vern Gambetta @ 6/15/2007 09:22:00 AM
4 comments
4 Comments:
I once heard a coach call this having an "athletic mind." I liked that concept.
I remember reminding the Marines I worked with that before they became a Marine they were human or people first. Be a good person and you will be a good Marine. Well the same applies here to the athlete. Be a good person, make wise choices and you will be a good athlete. That does NOT mean that being a good athlete or person is equivalent to being the best player or winning many champoinships. The same principle aplies to musicians, artists, etc not just athletes. Striving for excellence first implies being a person of excellence mentally, spiritually, physically, and emotionally. This is foundational to being the 24 hour athlete.
Jonathan Hewitt ATC
move.beyond@hotmail.com
I understand your frustrations. As a s&c coach at the Division I level, that is my biggest frustration. The athletes are not committed to making themseleves the best student-athlete they can be. It is so frustrating because a lot of the time they are the ones that have the most "potential." I think this concept is many times the difference between the great teams and the good ones. Great post!
Katie Munger
Texas Tech University
On day the athlete will wake up and he/she will not be an athlete. There is nothing worse in life than wasted talent. Katie I would ask myself why, the ones with the most "potential" sometimes fail to make the committment?
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