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Topic: Personal Best - Is it good enough? (Read 4997 times) previous topic - next topic
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Personal Best - Is it good enough?

We all love watching our kids play sports and encourage them to do their best.

When they do better than the time before, great!  Personal best is something within everyone's reach if they put their mind to it. That 10k run, half marathon, the round of golf etc etc etc.

However when we are talking about 'elite' sports people who represent their country and put themselves up on the world stage, should we get excited that Lindy the Triple Looper came 23rd and posted a PB or Jason Backhander who made the 3rd round at the US Open, his best ever result.

On the world stage, is it only titles and Gold, Silver and Bronze that mean anything??

Re: Personal Best - Is it good enough?

Reply #1 –
I don't get excited about it but what can they do beyond posting their best result?

Re: Personal Best - Is it good enough?

Reply #2 –
Quote from: ItsOurTime on
I don't get excited about it but what can they do beyond posting their best result?

Same.
I find that I feel good for them in terms of them going better than they have previously, but it doesn't do a whole lot for me.
Having said that, it's really more about how they feel about the result... They are the ones doing all of the hard work day in and day out.. If they are happy posting PBs and not getting disheartened because they don't medal then more power to them. Sport in it's purest form is a person doing his or her best and just competing.

Re: Personal Best - Is it good enough?

Reply #3 –
Quote from: townsendcalling on
We all love watching our kids play sports and encourage them to do their best.

When they do better than the time before, great!  Personal best is something within everyone's reach if they put their mind to it. That 10k run, half marathon, the round of golf etc etc etc.

However when we are talking about 'elite' sports people who represent their country and put themselves up on the world stage, should we get excited that Lindy the Triple Looper came 23rd and posted a PB or Jason Backhander who made the 3rd round at the US Open, his best ever result.

On the world stage, is it only titles and Gold, Silver and Bronze that mean anything??


Depends on the opposition.....you run Raph Nadal to 5 sets in the Aus open and its 10-8 in the 5th and Nadal wins and you lose first rnd....or is playing 3 numpties and make the 4th rnd a better result.....I'll take the former.
Kobie Bryant, LeBron James or Kevin Durant would set scoring records in the NBL if they played and could have a PB of 100 points a game but whats that worth vs substandard basketballers?....nothing.

Results have to be in perspective of the difficulty involved IMO...


 

Re: Personal Best - Is it good enough?

Reply #4 –
Goals are set on a basis where the measure is a result of an achievement which is not completely out of reach, but realistic enough, that it is an optimistic result. An almost unexpected result without being a complete dreamer. It is all relative to the next contest. It is all relative to the pressure of the moment, and it is all relative to past experiences, and what the next experience is that waits for you. Its all a "how long is a piece of string situation". Its a learning curve. Its developing true competitive nature. Its all crystal ball theory. Be hungrier than your opponent and you stand the best chance of being a winner. Skill only gets you so far. The space between the ears and ticker gets you all the way to the finish line. How you measure these elements is entirely up to each individual. How PB's fall into this equation is how each athlete measures their own KPI's. Its not all maths and stats, but it is not all about science either. Its everything. The one man that has the complete answer, can write a book and become a multi-millionaire in the process. Hence I better start writing. ;) ;D
This digital world is too much for us insects to understand.

Re: Personal Best - Is it good enough?

Reply #5 –
We lose perspective a bit by watching from the sidelines.

From a personal point of view, for me it's about the performance in respect of previous efforts, quality of the opposition and the depth of the field.

Sixth in a field of twenty four was always more satisfying than a bronze of silver medal when there were only three or four opposition competitors.

23rd against the best in the world is a terrific effort and very satisfying if you've done your best.

Re: Personal Best - Is it good enough?

Reply #6 –
The Athletes that compete to win are usually the athletes that DO win. They find something extra that you need to be a cut above the rest and these are the athletes that we enjoy watching. I've got no problem with athletes that are just making up the numbers but they are representing their country and as long as they give everything they've got then that's fine, I can support that, but it's not quite the same watching Steven Bradbury win gold vs. a Michael Phelps for example.

Re: Personal Best - Is it good enough?

Reply #9 –
Quote from: townsendcalling on
We all love watching our kids play sports and encourage them to do their best.

When they do better than the time before, great!  Personal best is something within everyone's reach if they put their mind to it. That 10k run, half marathon, the round of golf etc etc etc.

However when we are talking about 'elite' sports people who represent their country and put themselves up on the world stage, should we get excited that Lindy the Triple Looper came 23rd and posted a PB or Jason Backhander who made the 3rd round at the US Open, his best ever result.

On the world stage, is it only titles and Gold, Silver and Bronze that mean anything??

On any stage, including elite, personal best is more than enough. That's what you get sent away to do.  No-one expects more. If  they do that you acknowledge it. You can only compete to your form and potential.  Ability you have is essetially what comes out of  the eye of your father's ck during conception. Hard work is a necessity but doesn't fully compensate for natural talent.    As a coach if one of my athletes come 23rd in a personal best at the Olympics i'd be estatic. Only 3 people can win medals but you still need a field. Of course, if people preferred that, you could try to come 1, 2 or  3 the Essendon way, which many medalists do.