βοΈ The Day My Whole Life Changed βοΈ
Sometimes in life you can pinpoint the exact moment when everything changedβ¦ This was one of those momentsβ¦ This picture was taken 12 years agoβ¦ It was day 3 of the Olympic trials right after my 200m IM. My dad took the photo because I think my mom was too shaky. It was the best moment of my lifeβ¦ I finally did itβ¦ After 17 years of training.. Iβm going to the Olympic Games. And letβs be honestβ¦ Can you see the relief in my face??? I had just had my best year of trainingβ¦ Mostly because I was given the opportunity to work 1-1 with Dr Jim Bauman who was the sports psychologist of Michael Phelpsβ¦ #Blessed But Iβll never forget the time when things didnβt work out for me. Feeling good in training, even better during taperβ¦ I knew it was MY moment to shine and score a lot of points for my team (University of Virginia)... Even the warm-up was blazing fast and everyone knew I was in shape. And I always felt even better when I shavedβ¦ (in America, we let our beards grow for like 3 months before the big meet) But then when I got to the call room, something changed. My heart started racingβ¦ My brain decided to propel me into these full HD scenarios of everything that could go wrongβ¦ And the worst was, I had no clue how to stop it. And sure enough, the first 100m felt cranky and totally different than an hour ago during warm upβ¦ My legs started burning earlier than usual and I knew this is no bueno. When I touched the wall (yes, I came lastβ¦), I was devastated. I let down my team, my coaches, my parents and most importantlyβ¦ Myself. Again. Today, because I took that leap of faith, and because I got help from people who knew more than me (clearly!), I'm humbled to say I have been able to positively impact 100βs of swimmers in Europeβ¦ I have had the honor of helping and mentoring competitive swimmers who not only made themselves and their families happy, but also elevated their entire swim club. Lots of people ask me.. hey man.. How did you have such a massive drop in your PBβs in your last year of swimming?