HOPE & LUCK

Before I was hired as OAT's Provincial Development Coach, I spent two years as an intern coach at the National Triathlon Centre (NTC) in Victoria BC, while also attending the National Coaching Institute. It was an incredible experience, and I could write volumes about what I learned there, but I was reminded of one simple principle at our morning swim today: success in this sport will largely be determined by consistent, well-structured, hard work.

How often have we seen athletes (or coaches) who 'hope' for a good outcome, or wish for a little bit of 'good luck' to see them through? Over the long haul, how successful are those athletes (or coaches)?

Here are two quotes I'm always reminded of when I hear someone talking about hope or luck; Joel Filliol introduced me to the first one soon after he was hired to coach the Senior Squad at the NTC, and the second is one of my favourites I came across a while ago:

On Hope: "Hope is not a strategy." ~ unknown

On Luck: "Depend on the rabbit's foot if you will, but remember it didn't work for the rabbit."~ R. E. Shay

We've got the talent (athletes and coaches) in Ontario, and across Canada, to shine on the international stage. All it takes is a ton of hard work and dedication. No hope or luck required.