Three Thought Thursday

882 Words | 3 Min 32 Sec Read

Dear Reader,

It's a big day in the world of sports starting tomorrow—the Olympics begin in Paris.

If you're anything like me, the next two weeks will involve constantly checking highlights from sports I otherwise wouldn't watch during the four years between the games.

Gymnastics, track and field, swimming, and even more obscure sports like ping pong and skeet shooting—I love the drama, the storylines, and the famous athletes who star during the Olympics.

Specifically, I enjoy following the athletes’ journeys and what brought them to where they are today. We all know the most famous ones, like Michael Phelps, Simone Biles, and Jesse Owens. But on this Three Thought Thursday, I want to highlight the lesser-known, yet equally incredible, athletes who achieved greatness in their respective sports.

Lesser-Known Olympians—that’s the theme for this Three Thought Thursday.

A Real-Life Super Mom

Do you know about the Flying Housewife? Likely not, as Fanny Blankers-Koen of the Netherlands peaked in her athletic prime at arguably the worst time any athlete could—World War II. The track athlete was set up perfectly to enter her first Olympics in her prime running years, but then the Second World War erupted, and the Olympics were canceled. She went on to live a relatively normal life, getting married and having a few children. By the time the war was over and the next Summer Olympics came around, Fanny was a mother, a housewife, and 30 years old—way past the prime age for a track athlete. Still, she managed to qualify for the Olympics, dominated her events, and won FOUR gold medals in the 1948 London Games. Her achievement was awe-inspiring, given that she was way past her prime. Not only was she 30, but a mother. She gave birth…multiple times and still got back not only into good shape, but OLYMPIC CHAMPION SHAPE (talk about a super-mom) at a time when it was uncommon for women to compete in sports, let alone excel at them. World War II robbed her of competing in her prime, but she still went out and became the first woman to win four golds at an Olympics, smashing records along the way. It is even more remarkable because Olympic rules capped athletes to four events in track and field, so she could have won even more if not for the rules.

Maximize the opportunity even when the timing isn't ideal.

A Scoreboard Breaker

Have you heard of the woman who broke the scoreboard? Nadia Comăneci, arguably the most famous of the three Olympians I'll talk about today, went down in Olympic history when, at 14 years old, she became the first gymnast to score a perfect 10 at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. It was historic because no one in the history of gymnastics had ever scored a 10, and no one anticipated it either—the scoreboard wasn't even equipped to display a 10. She believed she could do it, even if it wasn’t a thought in anyone’s mind. When the scores went up, the scoreboard posted a 1 because it couldn't show a perfect score. That’d be like a high schooler scoring 100 points in a basketball game; the gym won’t be prepared. She became the sixth-youngest gold medalist of all time at 14, winning three gold medals, one silver, and one bronze before her 15th birthday. The perfect 10 will go down as arguably the greatest Olympic moment no one's ever heard of.

Don't let limitations cap your personal expectations.

The Twisted Leg Champion

This American Olympian probably wasn't very liked during the competitions…until her results. Wilma Rudolph is the definition of overcoming adversity to become a champion. Early in her childhood, Wilma was diagnosed with polio, which left her with a twisted leg. Beyond that, she also contracted both scarlet fever and double pneumonia. By the time she was eight, doctors told her she might never walk again. Rather than just accepting the doctors' advice to focus on walking, Wilma became a track athlete—you heard me right. The girl who wasn’t ever expected to WALK again set a goal to compete in a sport where you're supposed to run. The odds were stacked against her, but she overcame them. Wilma not only learned how to walk again, but ran Olympic qualifying times. She overcame so much, but just to add fuel to the fire, when Wilma miraculously qualified for the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, she was a Black athlete representing the United States during the height of the civil rights movement. Despite all this, she became the first American woman to win three gold medals in track and field in a single Olympic Games. She was already a success story, overcoming twisted legs and 2 deadly diseases. Wilma continued to rewrite her success story by elevating the profile of women's track and field in the United States and worldwide.

Go beyond overcoming the impossible.

Have a great next two weeks watching the best athletes in the world go at it. I know I will.

Grateful for you,

Tommy

P.S. Can you do me a favor if you learned something new in this edition? Forward this letter to a friend who may not know about one of these three stories. You’re the best.