An Open Letter to Canada’s Tokyo 2020 hopefuls: This Is Your Story

It was a summer no one expected. The Tokyo 2020 Games were postponed, athletes had to put a pause on training and the future seemed scary and uncertain.

With exactly one year to go before the start of the Games, I penned this letter to Tokyo 2020 hopefuls:

“I can’t help but wonder: What is today? Is it a recognition of a missed year? Or a celebration of one year out? Either way, it’s part of your story.

Everything that has (or hasn’t) happened in the last six months and what will happen in the coming year, is part of your story.

What story? Every Olympian has a story, it usually has a lesson in it, and they tell it in different ways:

1. Their VERY SHORT story is of a moment during the Games.

2. Their SHORT story spans the Opening to Closing Ceremony and includes both Olympic competition and the Olympic city. (A bit of sport, a bit of culture, a bit of a party).

3. Their REAL story is longer, much, much longer. It’s a detailed, behind the scenes tale of persistence, determination, effort and resilience. It happens in isolation as well as before crowds and includes tears, pain, joy and celebration.

Most (all?!) Olympic stories include tales about how solid plans got disrupted and then how they were assessed, recalculated and continued. Think of an athlete you know or even someone you only know of. Do you think they got through their journey on a direct path? Not a chance.

So here you are. You had a goal and a plan. You were sent home. Your plan was put on hold.

More accurately, your plan was thrown in the garbage but your goal was not. However, your story continues. You’ve come up with a plan and you, and your team, are figuring it out. This is what you have always done – figure things out and thrive.

How you figure this out IS YOUR STORY.

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