Be the One Whose Mettle Wins Medals: How Olympic Goals Start & Stick

It started with a field trip.?

“Were you on a class field trip,” Alisyn Camerota asked Simone Biles incredulously in a CNN Heroes interview , when you [first] went to a gym?? What happened there?”

“I had never even heard of gymnastics before,” answered the most decorated gymnast of all times. “I was just, like, oh I bet I could do that.”

And so, she did.

As much as I have loved the back flips in these Olympic games, I am fascinated by the back stories.

How athletes found their sport. Where they discovered resilience.

What made them stick not just the landings but the longevity of their careers, coming back to the mat, the pool, the board, bars or rings after extraordinary personal challenges.

How their back stories kept them coming back.

Because these are stories that impact the next generation as they watch and cheer and dream.

“I bet I could do that.” – Simone Biles

Picture Simone Biles peering into her first gym on a childhood field trip as you watch the girls in her Texas training gym now losing their minds.

Imagine the impact of Suni Lee’s story, when she was told she’d never again be a gymnast due to kidney disease , on anyone with health challenges watching her make the Olympic team and receive her fifth medal.

Think about middle school girls hearing Katie Ledecky comment on friendship , Ilona Maher talk about body image, Sammy Sullivan urge girls to play big , and Ashleigh Johnson encourage them to let their differences be their superpowers .

What do these mini-mentor moments mean?

They remind girls to dream big from day one.

To visualize themselves achieving what others tell them is impossible.

To recognize that friends matter…and body types don’t.

To remember that differences are superpowers, and that Olympians have their backs.

When Katie Ledecky made time to meet eight-year-old Maddi Lowry, the competitive swimmer whose video from the stands went viral within seconds, girls everywhere felt seen.

And it gets better.

Because girls are also learning that greatness recognizes greatness as they see their role models cheer on other role models:

Adele stopping an entire concert to put Sha’Carri’s race on stadium screens.

Beyoncé rooting for Biles at home among three generations of fans.

Gaga gobsmacked by gymnasts and capturing her own keepsake video.

Every Olympian remembers what it felt like to first peek into that gym, slip into the pool, pick up the ball or find her balance. And other rockstars know it.

My favorite part of these Olympics, in addition to the medals won and records shattered, is that women are sharing these memories with the next generation of watchful athletes - willing them to reach for more.

Mettle wins medals, and mentor moments are showing girls firsthand.

To me, that’s nothing but gold.

Looking forward to this final week of games,

Illana

êXTRAS: Three epic ads from the Paris 2024 Olympics you won’t want to miss: Toyota's Start Your Impossible ad, Nike's Winning Isn't Everything ad, and être's personal favorite, Dick's Sporting Goods' Big Moments ad. Yes, she made the team.