When 2nd Place is the Best Place to Be
I may be in the minority here, but I am a strong believer in 2nd place. I think 2nd place (as are 3rd, 4th and 5th) is a great place to be in – especially early on in the competition season.
Why? From the standpoint of coaching young athletes, 2nd place gives athletes the affirmation that yes, they are working hard and doing well, but leaves the door open for more improvement. Over the years I have noticed that if a child is consistently struggling in her events and feels she has no chance to place in the top 5 or so, she tends to give up or improve at a relatively slower pace.
However, athletes who believe they have a shot at the top spots, tend to be more eager to perfect the details, train a little harder and push themselves a bit when they have a a taste of success, but haven’t necessarily achieved their ultimate goal.
After all, 1st place is a tough spot to be in – the only place to move is down and keeping kids motivated to stay ahead of their compeition is hard.
What do you think? Is 2nd place the best place to be? Especially early in the competition season?
1 Comments
December 18th, 2008 at 10:00 pm
I so agree.Getting a good start with 2nd or 3rd gives the athlete something to really shoot for during the season. A true way to measure (besides time) on improvment and goal achievement.We know times are important but placement and progression speaks to alot to the athletes psych and progression.It’s encouragement.
Lastly,I think it’s so much better to understand winning and not winning but doing your best working for a PR along the road.