Athletics legend Carl Lewis yesterday gave a simple formula to the modern day athletes to achieve their goals, telling them to focus on their performance and forget about the rest.
“You can clock the fastest time which you may have targeted before the race but still you may end up losing. Don’t target the medal, focus on your timing, your performance and forget about the rest,” this was the gist of the International Olympics Committee’s ‘Sportsman of the Century’, Lewis’ advice during an event, which was organised by the International Sports Press Association (AIPS) in collaboration with the Qatar Sports Press Committee at the Torch Hotel.
Lewis was joined on the panel by compatriot Leroy Burrell, who twice set the world record for the 100m sprint, AIPS President Gianni Merlo, and Italian sprinter Fillipo Tortu, who qualified for the final of men’s 100m at the ongoing IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019.
“Focus your goal having it clear and without being afraid to tell it loud. This is your objective and you work with it always in your mind. Think of yourself as a business for your long term career and your training for your short term career so figure out how you are going to maximise this time,” Lewis, , the only man to successfully defend both a 100m and long jump Olympic title, advised Tortu during the chat.
“In anything you are going to have to make sacrifices. So now you are in professional track and field you have to think like a professional. Think of what you can do and what you and your manager can do to maximise this moment because you are going to build a brand,” he added.
‘Not much has changed in sprint’
Lewis, replying to a query, said that no significant progress has been made in athletics particularly in athletics despite the technology.
“It’s obviously very, very competitive but I don’t think it’s any more competitive at the championship level than it was back when we were competing . I think it’s just competitive throughout the season. So with all the technology and all the high performance tracks and everything else, we could have had second and third 30 years later.”
“Well, having been competing thirty years ago with timings that are still among the top three of the world means that athletics is still a human sport. What it’s important to think about, more than focusing on past years mistake is that we leave the sport better than it was and everybody can do this part for this.”
Legend unhappy with the IAAF
The 58-year-old was unhappy with the athletics governing body, saying the IAAF has not evolved like football, basketball and cricket.
“We are just not progressing, we are just doing the same thing over and over. If you go to other sports, every little detail is taken care of and there is entertainment. These sports they become television shows they strived to get better and better,” said the American track and field icon.
“If you look at the way every single popular sport is run, it’s different; the stadium looks spectacular the presentation is spectacular, they take care of every little detail. Even things like… why are we still putting numbers on our chests? They put numbers with pins? If we were thinking of television, we would take that off so that you will see the uniform on TV.”
He also complained about the less prize money for the athletes.
“My issue is that they pay 60,000 for the winner. We were paid 60,000 for the winner in 1997. So if you look at it in US Dollars – a cost of living increase – it should be 93,000 this year. So they are paying the same prize money and every year the athletes get less. So 30,000 is the value of gold medal now.”
Be the first to comment