Posted on: October 31st, 2003
Lessons from a Champion
- petepage[October 29, 2003 Zenaida A. Amador] IN an exclusive interview one night over BBC, Pete Sampras fielded a lot of questions on his career as a tennis champion for six straight years.
Two questions and answers intrigued me no end. The first question asked of Sampras was about when he decided to pursue his career seriously. Meaning serious to the point of being determined enough to win all those titles.
Pete Sampras answered that he was just happy sailing along in the game as the number six player in the world. He was enjoying himself, no pressure, happy where he was. And then one day, at a match which he lost and he realized he could have won, the defeat was so stinging that he decided he wanted to be number one. He realized it meant a lot of hardwork and pressure, but at that moment it became crystal clear to him that he wanted to be dead serious about the game. He was going to the top and he was going to stay there. The rest is tennis history.
What struck me is how a defeat led to hundreds of victories. The defeat did not overwhelm Sampras, it spurred him to glory, fame and money.
The second question was about what helped Sampras stay on top. And how he kept his cool everytime there were bad line calls and he didnˇ¦t like umpireˇ¦s decisions or when his opponent was rude or ill-mannered. Sampras answered that he just focused on what he had to do to win. He said it was a waste of time and energy to argue or quarrel. That was not part of the game. Not part of the sport. There you have it. Jewels of wisdom from a true champion. Victory indeed, is often achieved in the mind.
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