WEEKLY MOTIVATIONAL PIECE

Greetings!


ENJOY THIS WEEK'S SPECIAL MESSAGE ...

Like most of you, I’ve been captivated by the London Olympic Games. Enjoyed the big events from swimming, gymnastics and track & field for sure. As the games unfolded, I started delving into the storylines behind many of these unknown athletes who dedicated a lifetime to compete for Gold against truly the world’s best.

Many of these athletes faced constant economic difficulties, job and family dislocations, physical hardships, etc., while pursuing their dream. One story – that of Kayla Harrison – made my heart bleed. During these games, she became the first-ever American in Olympic history to win GOLD in the sport of Judo. En-route, she beat the Yankees-Angels-Rangers in her Judo competition - a formidable Russian opponent in her first match. A tough Hungarian in round two (that she had never beaten) and the No. 1 ranked female in the world from Brazil in the semis. To win Gold, Kayla had to face Great Britain’s hometown favorite - Gemma Gibbons - on her own turf. A heavyweight schedule of competition no doubt!

But it was the story away from athletics told by Kayla Harrison that is most gut-wrenching. This 22-year-old female fought one of the most courageous battles not only in her sport of Judo but in life. She had to endure an almost unimaginable betrayal, as her former coach in Ohio – much like the Jerry Sandusky Penn State scandal - preyed on their relationship, and her trust, and sexually abused Kayla starting when she was 12.

Kayla could have quit but the world caught a sneak preview of her tremendous courage, resiliency and resolve back then, when at the age of 16, she walked into a courtroom. She steeled herself to testify and looked her former coach in the eye and watched him plead guilty and receive a 10-year prison sentence. That alone was a heroic feat of Gold Medal standards!

Still in her teen years, next came the period of recover, rebuilding, recommitting and having the courage to return to the mat for Kayla. The everyday 4:30 in the morning workouts. Not only working to defeat an opponent but to defeat the demons that took over her mind as the year’s grew old.

“You’re talking about somebody who came from the lowest point of her life, who didn’t know if she wanted to go on any more, to now stepping on top of the Olympic podium, as an Olympic Champion, and the first American to ever do it in the sport of Judo, just says it all,” said Kayla’s current coach Jimmy Pedro.

Kayla Harrison walked away from the Olympics as a Champion in the record books but perhaps a medal of even higher standards …. the medal of HEROISM. She showed the world that Heroes don’t quit. That Heroes get off the mat. “This just proves that you’re only a victim if you allow yourself to be,” she said.

We only hope that by sharing her story at these Olympic Games, Kayla will become an inspiration to countless others around the world facing similar challenges.

ALL THE BEST!

Jim Loria

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“Mental Will is a Muscle that needs exercise, just like muscles of the body” – stated by Lynn Jennings, World Champion Runner

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“The Will to Win means nothing if you haven’t the Will to Prepare” – stated by Juma Ikangaa, the 1989 New York City Marathon Winner

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“A top athlete has to combine three different factors: physical strength, tactics, and mental toughness. The golden rule is to never let any of those slip” – stated by Felicia Ballanger, 10-time Cycling Gold Medalist

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HERE’S A PORTION OF A POEM I WILL SHARE IN FULL LATER

… “Courage must come from the soul within … The man must furnish the will to win... So figure it out for yourself, my lad… You were born with all that the great have had… With your equipment they all began… Get hold of yourself and say: “I CAN!”

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Jim Loria
E-Mail: loria@sfstampede.com