THE SPORT LEGEND MOVIE

There are two type of people in this world, those that believe there are two types of people in this world and those that don't.

People either like the sports movie and have seen every one of them, or there are those who don't like the sports movie and roll their eyes at the memory of that speech that is supposed to raise your hair that the coach always gives in the locker room to a dejected team that emerges to give 110%, winning at the last second. Whether you think that the sports movie is cheese or not, they do serve a purpose.

At one time, America was "Rudy", the little guy with heart that braved incredible obstacles to live a dream (to one day become Mark McGuire?), to have his day in the sun. America was built on this idea that if you had heart, worked hard, believed in yourself, were brave, and never gave up that one day you would triumph over insurmountable odds and emerge a champion with the respect and adulation of your peers (and get filthy rich).

The qualities at least at one time associated with sport built this country and are what continue to drive it, along with copious amounts of Starbucks coffee. In the United States every one of us grew up with a sports figure, a legend that served as a reminder that we can triumph. Sport serves as our reminder that we are in control of our own destiny. We (at times) can overcome height, weight, natural selection, bankruptcy, sickness, Las Vegas odds, and anything else life throws at us and prevail.

America loves an underdog. That is the common theme of these sports movies. Though our country has turned from a "Rudy" into some sort of a Mark McGuire in certain aspects we were once and are at heart a people that relate to a Rudy, a Rocky (Rocky I), a Seabiscuit, or Cinderella Man.

There are as many obstacles in this country as there are people because there exists a challenge before every one of us. Okay, that's just part of life. They come in all shapes and sizes. Some guy who is much smarter than I am once said something along the lines of a champion being determined not by their victories but by the way they handle adversity.

Sport provides us with a clear glimpse into a defining moment where decision and action must be taken and the consequences are immediate. Within a relatively short amount of time and a few commercial breaks there emerges a victor, someone that has inspired us and reminded us that anything is possible.

We are fueled on this dream of one day making it and breaching the mote that divides the legends from the rest of the pack. The story of an ordinary man doing something extraordinary sells movie tickets because we all must believe somewhere deep inside that we too are capable of one day doing something incredible that will pull people from their seats and warrant a deafening cheer.

It drives some people in other countries crazy (I travel enough to know) this "can-do" attitude of ours. Others marvel at it. Nowhere is that "you can do it" attitude more prevalent than here in the United States. The tag line from that gem of the silver screen, who is Rob Schneider now comes to mind, "You can do it!".

But even our sport comedies have that same predictable formula. That is perhaps what is most interesting, that we know the formula so well yet still pay the $7.50 to see the delinquent football team overcome, the stammering water boy overcome, the college hockey team overcome, the little football player overcome.

Interestingly, the movie that comes to mind where the formula is broken is one of the all time classic sports movies, the Bad News Bears. Without providing that predictable ending with fist pumps and confetti that movie reminded us of something true and real. We don't always win. Yet, it still leaves us with hope.

That's great! Ask anyone that has a sports legend movie based on their life and they will tell you that you learn more from the losses than the victories, at least as much, and we ALL experience losses. It doesn't mean that you can't hate to lose. It simply means that you have to start somewhere and it is never the top. Losing is part of that road to the top.

The first time Michael Jordan bounced a ball it bounced off of his shoe, which by the way was not an Air Jordan. Mark Spitz got in the pool and peed long before he could swim the butterfly. All great champions know as much about defeat as they do about victory.

Great champions have the courage to risk defeat and humiliation for the chance to win.

Hope is a powerful thing. People for centuries have given up everything, risking their lives to come to the United States just for a chance to make a better life. No guarantees. It's what built this country and it is what made us into what we are today. And it's what those sports legend movies are all about.

We see it in sport and we relate. We know what it is to dream and pursue that dream risking everything, even the most humiliating failure, because when we do reach our goal, when we do have our day in the sun, it is all worth it

Come down to one of our camps, they rock and so will you after learning the facts of swimming.

Happy Holidays,
Gary