Team Brave - Big decisions in sport!
Sometimes in your sports careers you might have to make big choices, some might even happen whilst you're still quite young.
Think of Messi deciding to move countries from Argentina to Spain to play football for Barcelona- he was only 13!
When you're making a big decision, I feel that the most important thing to consider is what will make you the happiest!
If you're happy, you're much more likely to be relaxed, have fun and perform better as a result.
It's a good idea to chat through decisions with your family and coaches / teachers too, because they'll always want the best for you, and can help you to consider all your options clearly.
Sometimes athletes have a hard time deciding between sports. For example, when I was 15 I had to decide between rowing and football. I chose football because I enjoyed it more and I'd happily play it anytime. I'm really glad, because playing and coaching football has given me loads of great opportunities around the world, and loads of great friends!
My advice would be to not make the decision too early, because at a young age it's great to play a wide variety of sports so that you can develop a broad range of skills and types of fitness & coordination- which will make you a better overall athlete. It also gives you time to have great experiences in lots of different sports, with diverse friends.
It's also important to think of opportunities that allow you to keep playing with friends or team mates that you really get along with, as this will ensure that you keep enjoying your sport.
A footballer I coached at youth level called Ava Kuyken, recently made a brave decision to cut her US Soccer scholarship short as she wasn't enjoying being in the team there, and is now thriving with great friends and team mates at Bristol City FC. Even at a high level, wellbeing and happiness come first.
If you watched Wimbledon this year, you'd have seen another athlete; Emma Raducanu making a decision to pull out of the tournament for her wellbeing. Emma had felt overwhelmed being so young at a massive tournament. She gave herself some time, and in the end came back stronger! She won the US Open & Sports Personality of the Year!
Sometimes a decision might mean a lot of hard work, but you know you want to do it in order to achieve your goal.
Sam Kane from New Zealand broke his neck, and was told he'd never play rugby again. However, he knew he really wanted to achieve his rugby potential, so he put in 2 years of training to rehab and recover, and now is the All Blacks captain!
A tough decision and lots of hard work that paid off!
Another athlete that I know, Sean Rose, broke his back in a skiing accident whilst in the army, and had to be in a wheelchair.
However, rather than quitting skiing, he made the decision to continue to pursue skiing in the paralympic version! What an inspirational example of making the best of a very challenging situation. Sean went on to compete in the X games and world championships- and is always up for any challenge; kiteboarding, parachute jumping & flying planes!
It just shows, that if you make a big decision, and have a great positive attitude, then you can achieve amazing things and do what makes you happiest!
Becca
