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A guy with a $50 bike
Updated: Wednesday June 13, 2001 2:37 PM
Canadian Veronica Brenner, 26, is considered a veteran in the sport of freestyle skiing. The aerialist was a member of the 1998 Canadian Olympic team and won the 1997 World Cup title. Brenner, a native of Scarborough, Ontario, missed the past World Cup season after tearing her ACL but is back on track to make the 2002 Olympic team. Check out Brenner's diary on CNNSI.com as she prepares for Salt Lake City.
June 12, 2001
Lake Placid provides a unique training environment. It was the site of both the 1932 and 1980 Olympics and has retained its athletic atmosphere by becoming home to the U.S. Olympic Training Center (a superb facility containing dorm rooms, a physio clinic, gymnasiums, an all-you-can-eat cafeteria, a weight room, and a sports science department, which are all free of charge for U.S. National Team athletes). It is also the home to a number of U.S. team federations, and many world-class training and competition sites. Sometimes I feel as though I'm back in the Olympic Village in Nagano.
Surrounded by such athleticism, it's hard not to be motivated. However, it's not just the Olympic hopefuls who provide inspiration. Recently I was a volunteer for a triathlon (consisting of swimming, biking and running legs) that was held in town. This particular race was open to everyone, but since it was a qualifier for the World Championships, many top U.S. triathletes were participating. Long after the winners had been determined, one of the last competitors -- a balding, slightly overweight, middle-aged man -- ran by my checkpoint and blurted out, "This is my first one! I rode on a fifty-dollar bike I bought at a yard sale!" The pure joy in his voice was something I'd expect to hear from an athlete after winning an Olympic medal. It then occurred to me that this was his Olympics. Every sport is different, athletes come in all shapes and sizes, and each of us has individual goals, yet our reasons for participating in sport are very similar. Our bodies may ache and our brains may be exhausted, but the exhilaration, the emotional high that comes when an athlete is challenged and triumphs -- that feeling, even though it may only last a moment, that feeling is worth every ounce of sweat, every bruise, every hour spent in the gym, and every time you wanted to quit but didn't. As a full-time athlete, staying motivated can be hard work. I have days that I just don't want to get out of bed. I have days when that last sprint seems unbearable. Sometimes I'd rather lie down on the snow and cry than do one more jump. On days such as these, I have to reach way down inside to remind myself of that euphoric feeling. Some days all it takes is a guy with a $50 bike. "The important thing is not to win, but to take part. The important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well." --Unknown -- Veronica
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