Multisport Argument Again.
On our last bus trip we were discussing multisport athletes
compared to ones that specialize at a younger age. The comment that was made on the bus that
resonated with me is resiliency. An
athlete that is a star player of a sport at a young age and plays only that
sport is always treated different. They
really don’t have to learn to adjust to coming off the bench or struggling
because they are not the best yet. Then
when the athlete hits a certain level and they are required to play in a backup
role to learn more they don’t have the skills to cope with this new set of
circumstances.
In the book “The Art
of Learning” by Josh Waitzkin he says “Successful people shoot for the stars,
put their hearts on the line in every battle and ultimately discover that the
lessons learned from the pursuit of excellence means much more than the
immediate trophies and glory. In the long run painful losses may prove much
more valuable than wins-those who are armed with a healthy attitude and are
able to draw wisdom from every experience, “good” or “bad” are the ones who
make it down the road”.
Athletes that pick up new sports struggle for a while and
really have to focus on improvement. It teaches them to be resilient and to
continue to try to improve. I was
talking with a bunch of retired Canadian men’s volleyball players that live in
Calgary. After they retired a bunch took
up playing hockey and basketball. They
had a basic understanding of the sports but really enjoy the challenge of the
new sport and get a thrill out of learning again.
To only choose to do things we are already strong at really
hide our ability to cope when we get to different situation.
