Your encouragement – it can make the difference

In the 1996 Olympics, gymnast Kerri Strug had the weight of winning the gold medal for her team on her shoulders. All she had to do was make a successful jump and the United States would win the gold. But when she performed her first jump, she sprained her ankle and could hardly walk. She fell and did not obtain the score needed to win. Sitting on the mat with tears streaming down her face, she cried for two reasons. First, she was in pain. Second, she could see no way to make up the score needed to win. But she had another jump! She felt like quitting, but her coach, standing on the sidelines, said, “You can do it, Kerri!” Limping as she tried to prepare for a vault, she found it difficult to move. After the jump, she explained to an interviewer that all she could do to persist was to keep her eyes on her coach. He kept her from focusing on the pain in her ankle. She was hurting – she was crying – but her coach believed in her. And she found strength from his encouragement that she herself didn’t have. Even with the limp, she took off running and did the jump. She had to nail the landing in order to win. She had to try to do this with one good ankle and one injured ankle. And she did it! With her coach’s encouragement holding her up, she did the impossible. She earned a high enough score for the US team to win the gold. Your encouragement – it can make the difference.