In der Autobiographie von Pete Sampras (A Champions Mind) las ich jüngst Sätze, die ich für zitierenswert halte.
"The Great challange in junior tennis is avoiding pressure, because it cdan be huge [...] By putting pressure on myself to develop a great game, I had less pressure to win. These days, I tell the kids that the way I grew up, it wasn't about winning. It was about playing well, about playing the "right" way. That apprach helped me enjoy the game and develop mine to its maximum potential."
Bemerkenswert ist, dass Sampras diese Worte schreibt als er die Phase beschreibt, in welcher er ungewohnt häufig verliert, weil er seine beidhändige Rückhand auf die einhändige umstellt. Dieser schwierige Anpassungsprozess dauerte gute zwei Jahre, die aber ebenfalls langfristig betrachtet zu seinen legendären Erfolgen beitrug. Deshalb betont er auch die Nachhaltige Entwicklung vor kurzfristigen Erfolgen:
"Another very valuable side effect of playing up and making a radical change in my technique was that I learned to lose. A champion is supposed to hate to lose, and it wasn't like I was ever crazy about the idea. But I learned to deal with losing without having may spirit or confidence broken, which would help me immensely over time, not just in the big picture but even in specific matches when I found myself in a jam. Fear of losing is a terrible thing."
Und ein wenig später heist es:
"What I am saying ist that it's wise to look at your game and take the long view - where can your natural athletic inclinations take you in five, ten, fifteen years?"
