It's About A Lot More Than Gold

When I first heard about the One Winter, Five Dreams which Panasonic was putting together, it instantly caught my attention. While the TV and other media will spend the vast majority of their time focusing on the star athletes and those who are medal contenders, the part of the Olympics that I have always enjoyed most are the stories behind the athletes and the obstacles they have overcome to even make it to the Olympic Games. Every athlete has a story because it would be impossible to get to an Olympic level without having to overcome numerous obstacles along the way.

It's the dreams of these lesser known athletes that can inspire all of us to do more and be better. Each has found a reason beyond a gold medal to get up each day and put in the grueling time and effort it takes to train and be at an Olympic level. They have learned to enjoy the journey while looking at the goal of a gold medal instead of being so focused on the gold that they miss on the everyday triumphs. They have found a passion that I believe all of us hope to find.

You can see it in their comments and goals. It's about skiing to make sure that future generations in his home country see another winter Olympic athlete from Ethiopia someday:



It's knowing that the results "don't equate (to) the person that I am and my self image." It's about more than that -- to simply to get a chance to land the jump he missed at Torino in Vancouver:



It's about showing a younger generation "what an old man can do" when effort and determination are exhibited -- even at the age of 45:



It's about finding the place where you are happiest which may happen to be on the ice:



Even an athlete that failed to qualify for Vancouver hasn't let this setback stop her. In fact, she probably illustrates best of all that it's about a lot more than a gold medal with her determination to continue to practice and support her teammates -- and even look toward Sochi as her next goal:



When you know the story behind these athletes journey to the Olympics, it's hard not to root for them. Even better, it's hard not to be inspired enough to say to yourself that with some effort and determination, you could be doing some amazing things as well. And in the end, that inspiration to those around them surely shines and glimmers much brighter than any gold medal...