Persevering: The Ultimate Olympic Sport
ink drop - stock.adobe.com
Be resilient, power through it, suck it up, never give up. These are all mantras we’re taught to repeat to ourselves when facing adversity in our professional and personal lives.
Perhaps my favorite word for this concept is “persevere,” which comes from the combination of Latin root words meaning to “continue steadfastly” through “very strict” or severe circumstances.
Like many of you, I have experienced a number of “opportunities” to continue steadfastly through adversity in my life, from the relatively minor to the devastatingly severe. From these experiences, I have adopted a particular mindset for dealing with adversity, while developing a greater sense of compassion for those who may respond differently or have limited options.
There are countless speeches, stories and books that deal with the topic of overcoming adversity, from the children’s story “The Little Engine That Could,” to the inspiring speech given by Jimmy Valvano at the ESPY awards in 1993, and finally, to the more recent best-selling book by Angela Duckworth titled, “Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance.”
As a sucker for the Olympic Games, however, I think the best examples of perseverance and dealing with adversity come from them.
Mount Olympus was the mythological home of the ancient Greek Gods, each of whom represented some idealized version of human characteristics such as wisdom (Athena), love (Aphrodite) or courage (Ares). The Olympic Games, originally put on to honor those gods, provide a modern-day stage for the greatest athletes in the world to compete against each other in their respective sports every four years. Like the myths concerning the ancient Greek gods, the Olympic Games often give us an opportunity to witness outsized versions of basic human characteristics, as the Olympic athletes personify “the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat,” as so memorably described by ABC’s Wide World of Sports.
The 2021 Summer Olympics recently concluded in Tokyo and gave us memorable examples of responding to adversity, including American gymnast Simone Biles, who engaged in a very public act of self-care when she felt she could no longer “continue steadfastly through” the competition without endangering herself.
While honoring that choice, I’d like to highlight three other medal-worthy examples of Olympic athletes who inspired me by their ability and willingness to continue steadfastly through different challenges, followed by an even more inspiring example of a leader helping an individual contributor through painful adversity in an unforgettable way.
Bronze Medal Lesson: It Ain’t Over ‘Til It’s Over
Gable Dan Steveson is a 21-year-old heavyweight wrestler named for one of the greatest free-style wrestlers of all time, Dan Gable. (No pressure there, right?) He dominated the competition up until the gold medal match in the Tokyo Olympics where he faced the three-time world champion (and seriously scary-looking dude!), Geno Petriashvili.
In the finals, Steveson gets off to another fast start, and is up 4-0 over his opponent when the tide begins to turn. With under three minutes remaining in the match, Petriashvili scores eight out of the next nine points—at one point rolling Steveson back and forth on the mat like an older brother who has finally decided to teach his younger brother a lesson. Steveson’s prospects for winning gold seem over at this point, as he is down 8-5 with only 10 seconds left in the match.
But then the magic happens—Steveson scores a quick two points on a takedown to make it 8-7 with under seven seconds left. He then whirls feverishly around his more experienced foe, seeking an opening, and he eventually finds one. He scores a wildly improbable takedown just as the final horn sounds, stunning his opponent and the crowd with a 10-8 victory. Words can’t do it justice, but YouTube can. Watch it here.
Steveson provided a timeless example of why it is important to play right up until the moment the whistle blows or the horn sounds, even when the odds seem insurmountable.
What examples can you think of in your own life when playing until the whistle blows has paid off?
2. Silver Medal Lesson: Run Through the Tape
Allyson Felix is one of the greatest American sprinters in history, having won medals in five different Olympic Games, starting in Athens in 2004. Like all sprinters, Felix was taught to “run through the tape,” which means both not to give up before the end of the race and also to lean into the challenge to give yourself whatever advantage you can gain over your competitors.
In late 2018, Felix gave birth to her daughter Camryn after a touch-and-go delivery that resulted in an emergency C-section at 32 weeks, followed by extended time in the Intensive Care Unit. Although she was in her mid-30’s by this time—an advanced age for any sprinter—Felix decided to return to competitive running to set an example for her daughter and demonstrate the resilience of working mothers.
Along the way, however, Felix learned that her shoe sponsorship, which is typically what pays the bills for runners, would not be renewed at the same level by Nike. Instead, the company insisted she take a 70 percent cut following her pregnancy. Felix refused, started her own shoe brand and publicized the plight of new mothers in the world of professional athletics, resulting in industry-wide changes.
Felix overcame these odds to win gold and bronze medals in the Tokyo Olympics, becoming the most decorated American track athlete in history, with a total of 11 medals. In doing so, she showed not just her daughter, but all of us, how to keep running through the tape to achieve victory.
What obstacles and interference have YOU overcome on your way to victory?
3. Gold Medal Lesson: Keep Getting Up
Anyone who has experienced a close family loss will find the story of Olympian Dan Jansen equally heartbreaking and inspiring. Jansen was the fastest speed skater in the world and was favored to win two gold medals in the Calgary Olympics in 1988.
However, just hours before the 500-meter finals, Jansen’s older sister Jane, a world-class skater herself, lost her battle with leukemia. After vowing in their last telephone call to win a gold medal for her, he slipped on the ice and fell shortly after the race begin, an unthinkable mistake for a racer of his caliber. Tragically, he fell again on the last lap of the 1000-meter race later that week, even though he was in the lead at that point.
Despite these embarrassing falls on the most public of stages, Jansen refused to give up. He competed again in the Albertville Olympics in 1992, where he failed to medal despite being one of the favorites. Fate gave him another opportunity when the Olympic Committee decided to hold the next Winter Olympics on an abbreviated schedule in 1994, giving him two remaining chances to win the gold medal he had promised Jane.
After slipping again and finishing eighth in the 500-meter race, Jansen gave a heroic effort in his final Olympic event, winning gold in the 1000-meter race and shattering the world record in the process, despite losing his footing temporarily in the second half of the race. To commemorate the long overdue victory, Jansen skated one last lap around the track carrying his daughter, who he named Jane in honor of his sister.
Now THAT’s what I call a victory lap.
The adage, “if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again,” can hardly do justice to Jansen’s example of perseverance played out on a world stage. Even now, it’s heartbreaking to consider the pain of falling inexplicably in two races he was favored to win after promising his dying sister a gold medal, just as it’s equally inspiring to consider the dedication he displayed in continuing to get up and try again until he achieved his ultimate victory.
When have you bounced back from a difficult loss to achieve something of deep meaning to you?
4. Platinum Medal Lesson for Leaders: Lean On Me
Although there are only three medals officially awarded for each Olympic event, it’s appropriate to add a fourth category here for one final example of perseverance that stands out from the others – though not for the reasons you might expect. Let’s call this the platinum medal, after the precious metal that is 15-20 times scarcer than gold.
Derek Redmond was a runner for Great Britain who participated in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. He specialized in the 400 meters, a race requiring an unusual combination of speed and endurance.
In the 400-meter semifinals, Redmond took off like a shot, only to collapse like he had been shot when he pulled his hamstring midway through the race. Although he had no hope of advancing to the finals, Redmond courageously got to his feet and began to hobble down the track, trying desperately to at least finish the race.
At this point, an unathletic man comes down from the stands and demonstrates how leaders should respond when someone on their team is struggling. Watch for yourself .
This man is Derek Redmond’s father Jim, who earns admission to the unofficial Father’s Hall of Fame when he runs onto the track, puts his arm around his son, and allows him to lean on him all the way to the finish line. There are so many soul-stirring moments in this scene, including Redmond burying his face in his father’s shoulder when he realizes who he is, and his father shaking off the well-meaning but clueless race official who attempts to get him off the track. Clearly, the “Just Do It” hat the father is wearing in the video means much more than an empty corporate slogan in this moment.
Like the other athletes discussed above, Derek Redmond demonstrated an Olympic-caliber willingness to continue steadfastly through severe adversity. His father, on the other hand, demonstrates an equally valuable lesson for leaders, showing how they can care for their team members facing adversity, particularly team members who may not be able to continue on their own.
Leaders, how can you get in the race and allow your team members to lean on you so you can cross the finish line together?
While few of us are world-class athletes, all of us run races and face challenges that feel Olympian from time to time. If you are interested in working with a certified coach who can help you complete whatever race you’re currently running, email me at mike.tooley@upstreamprinciples.com.
Mike Tooley is a Co-Founder with Upstream Principles LLC, a coaching and consulting firm dedicated to helping individuals, leaders, and teams go upstream to discover solutions for their leadership and employee development challenges. As a certified Leadership and Strengths Coach, Mike is committed to serve as a guide to help others discover, and live out, who they are designed to be.