admin
Lindelwe Mgodla Sports Correspondent
WORLD champion swimmer and multi-medal holder Kirsty Coventry is a true example of how, with determination, perseverance, sacrifice and self-belief, one can overcome any obstacles despite their humble beginnings. The two-time Olympic Games women’s 200m backstroke champion was the guest speaker at a Food For Thought session at the United States Embassy Public Affairs Section in Harare on Tuesday. She relayed to her audience that for her to be a world record holder she had to sacrifice, persevere and believe.
She asserted that even though sacrifice can be viewed as a negative thing it is important to look at it positively.
“The sacrifice I had to make was not just leaving my family and friends behind, but it was also having a little bit of faith that the decision I was making was for a bigger picture so it is important,” said Coventry.
Being an athlete Coventry has suffered numerous injuries which some thought would end her career but according to her, these injuries represented the pillar of perseverance.
She recalled her experiences four months before the 2012 London Olympic Games when she dislocated her knee and was later diagnosed of pneumonia.
“I had to persevere and I told myself that failure is not an option,” she said. She endured watching from the sidelines as her peers practised for the London Games.
She told her audience on Tuesday that that perseverance does not go alone and one has to have self-belief, which she believes is the most important tool anyone can ever have.
“We have to be able to believe in ourselves, in the bigger picture, our goals and our dreams. Self-belief for me is one of the main reasons that I got to London.
Not because I had sacrificed by moving away from home, not because I persevered some tough injuries but because I believed in myself and I was strong enough to do that,” Coventry said.
Coventry said that the London Games were her best Olympic experience ever because it showed her how strong she was.
Despite being declared as incapable of competing, she still went on to swim and came sixth in the final of the women’s 200m backstroke event. To her this most rewarding part was the recognition she received from her fellow swimmers for staying positive and hopeful against adversity.
She urged aspiring athletes to try and find a balance between athletics and education because at the end of the day they need something to fall back on at the end of their athletic careers.
Coventry said being able to cut down on training hours but still be able to get an acceptable amount of training done is by far the greatest tool an athlete could ever possess.
“You can believe in yourself, but you’ve got to have those dreams and your dreams will come true if you work really hard and if you’re willing to sacrifice and persevere through things and just believe in yourself,” she said.
Coventry’s professional swimming career kicked off at Auburn University in the United States where she was awarded a full scholarship. Under her belt she has a total of 39 medals — 17 gold medals, 17 silver medals and 1 bronze medal.
Looking ahead, Coventry said she wants to contribute to the growth of sport in Zimbabwe and in particular swimming.
She said she is working on establishing the Kirsty Coventry Academy which will focus on harnessing the skills of young Zimbabwean swimmers and hopefully train them to be world class competitors.
Coventry became affectionately known as Zimbabwe’s “Golden Girl” after she was the first ever Zimbabwean to reach the Olympic Games finals in 2004 and won a gold medal in the women’s 200m backstroke event in Athens, Greece.
Lindelwe Mgodla is a journalism student at the National University of Science and Technology
Online Reporter