5 Motivational Quotes from Great Coaches To Jumpstart the New Year

Swimming World March 2021 - Doc's Guys - Doc Counsilman - Indiana University

5 Motivational Quotes from Great Coaches To Jumpstart the New Year

By Katie Wingert, Swimming World College Intern.

As many swimmers navigate the sport’s waters, it can be difficult to stay confident. In times like these, it is essential to turn to the motivational wisdom of our coaches, and to consider the words of those who have guided athletes through challenges and successes.

Here are five quotes from some of the greatest coaches in sports history to inspire you as you pursue post-season success:

1. “Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.” –Vince Lombardi

In swimming, it can be all too easy to compare yourself to your “ideal” swimming self and see those ideals as impossible. In order to succeed, however, as this motivational quote suggests, you must be willing to reach for your seemingly impossible goals. If you dig deep, that phenomenal, Lezak-like finish might be possible. That NCAA cut, seemingly out of reach, might simply require a little extra heart. Don’t deny the possibility of your dreams.

2. “Here’s how I’m going to beat you. I’m going to outwork you. That’s it. That’s all there is to it.” –Pat Summitt

Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr / Swimming Australia Ltd.

One temptation for swimmers is to worry about who they will be swimming in their races. We wonder if the swimmers next to us are faster than us, bigger than us, and more rested than us.

Instead of worrying about whether or not you will beat the person beside you in your race, concern yourself with your own work ethic. Are you more focused and determined to win than anyone you know? Do you work harder than anyone else in the pool? If so, then you have done everything you can do to win. Take a note on the famous Pat Summitt‘s motivational wisdom, and trust your own hard work.

3. “Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” –John Wooden

You can’t set the water temperature the day of the meet, transform the pool air quality within the span of a single meet session, change out the blocks for better ones, or create an extra break for warmup in between an awards session and the next race. You can, however, take as many disciplined steps as possible on your own to stay healthy, eat nourishing foods, breathe deeply, and recover quickly during your meet. When you encounter difficult, unchangeable circumstances during the course of a meet, the key is to take responsibility for the power you have over your own destiny.

4. “We all have to give up a little bit of something in this sport, and mental toughness is going out there and doing what’s best for the team even though everything isn’t going exactly the way you want it to.” –Bill Belichick

Photo Courtesy: Brian Jenkins-UVM Athletics

It is important to remember that, although swimming by very nature encourages individual goals and achievement, swimming is also a team sport. Sometimes, during championship season, you must sacrifice your own desires for the good of the team, whether that means swimming an off event, swimming in a relay spot you don’t like, or swimming through sickness or injury. Regardless, the good of your team, as this motivational quote suggests, merits sacrifice and a positive attitude.

5. “And the swim only hurt once–from the beginning to the end.” –Doc Counsilman

For many of us, the winter season is flying by. We just need to make one final push to the end. No race is easy, but—to echo the motivational wisdom of one of history’s greatest swim coaches, who swam the English channel as a 58-year-old–each race only hurts once until it’s over. There’s a light at the end of the tunnel, so find that extra gear and finish strong.

All commentaries are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Swimming World Magazine nor its staff.

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