Here in Australia we do things very differently and perhaps that's why as a country in sport we punch far above our weight, however its not without its pressures. As a past athlete and having known a few athletes that had made the trip across the pacific to take part in US College scholarship programs its common knowledge the US has a "throw all the eggs against the wall and those who don't crack will succeed" philosophy. I guess that's why USA is always at the top of the medal tally. So, even though Victoria Garrick presents a convincing argument for athlete welfare, while the US collegiate system is geared toward programs that create success at the Olympic level its likely those individuals such as Victoria are likely to eventually drop out or burn out.
Putting it bluntly, we have a saying here "The cream always rises to the top" and for those of you that are unfamiliar with that term it loosely translates to those athletes in Victoria's survey who are not experiencing the mental health issues presented here will not crack and hence succeed, as they are better at handling both the internal and external pressures placed upon them.
That said, Victoria has failed to acknowledge one very important point. She seems to blame the culture as the problem and takes no responsibility for her own contribution towards it. Nobody ever considers the very nature of what drives the culture forward is indeed the very floor of the individuals that support it.. Yes, congratulation to Victoria for stepping forward, however if she is to ever move forward she needs to ask this very question of herself........What is driving me to achieve and succeed? This is a question that each athlete will ultimately arrive at a variation of the same answer. I would love to share this with all of you; however what would be the point of delivering such valuable information on a plate. One must do the work to fully appreciate the awareness and then the understanding that follows. Only then can an individual absolutely and authentically make a decision that will bring peace to their current circumstance and support their future direction on all levels.
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