Sport Inspires.

All throughout high school I hated sports. I wasn't good at them, so I figured that I was just naturally "unsporty" and should subsequently focus all my energies into my academic work and ignore sport forever.

The funny thing is, that alongside this animosity, I was an aspiring figure skater. I skated at least twice a week for ten years, had a private coach, and competed in competitions. Yet, I just wasn't good enough - so I quit.

Then there was field hockey. Around grade 9, I became convinced that if I didn't play a sport I would never be admitted into university. So I joined the city field hockey team for my age group, and the next year my school team. I stayed for three years, but also wasn't very good at that - so I quit.

This seems to be a recurring theme in my life - quitting at things I am just not good at. Well, that's until I discovered running.

I ran in high school to "stay in shape" and attempted the same routine in university. However, it wasn't until the summer after my third year when, after experiencing the never ending woes of a recent heartbreak I decided that I needed to get my strength back. Yes, I was thinking about inner strength, but I knew that sitting around and trying to overcome all the anger and sadness just wasn't going to do it, so I slipped on my running shoes and headed out the door.

After twenty minutes I was beat and had to walk home. The next time I put on my shoes I was hesitant, but then those feelings of sadness came bubbling up and I started moving.

Each day, in a new attempt to uncover my own secret powers I ran a little faster and a little further until by the end of the summer I was running for at least forty minutes without stopping. Today, I have managed to keep that rhythm up, without stopping and am now proudly training for my first half marathon. So there! How's that for getting over a broken heart! I literally ran away from it, but today I keep running to stay strong, to stay focused and to stay committed to overcoming the next obstacle that life throws at me.

So why I am writing about this now? Well because of the olympics of course. Last night I made a nostalgic return to my sport past by watching Virtue and Moir ice-dance their way into Olympic history. Their performance was breath-taking - I cried - but more importantly it served as an important reminder of the greater role that sport plays in society.

Sport inspires. It truly does, and I think this is the first time I have truly realized that while watching the Olympics. Learning about the grueling process that an athlete puts herself through to become an olympian is awe inspiring in a way that only someone who has completed the process would know, but I think there is something that us masses can take away from the process as well.

We can over come immense obstacles and sport is just one way of coping with the challenges that life brings. Sport itself is a challenge, but when placed in the context of one's own life, it also becomes a way to defeat the challenge.

Perhaps my new found appreciation for the power of sport comes from my own realization that finally, for the first time in my life I can honestly say that I am good at a sport. I am a good runner, and how do I know that?

Because every time I lace up my running shoes and get ready to head out into the fresh air, I get butterflies of excitement in my stomach knowing that today I am going to go far and run my best. I guess this is how every Olympian feels when they step out onto the snow or ice - they know they through all the pain and struggle they have made it to this day, and today all they can do is there best. That is what truly inspires.