Alexandre Bilodeau won Canada’s first gold medal of the Olympics in skiing freestyle (meaning go as fast as you can down a hill of moguls and throw in some major jumps). And behind the gold was an even bigger story. In a sport that could best be described as ‘kick ass’ and possibily loaded with bravado, comes a young 22 year old man from Quebec who is mature, sophisticated and humble. When asked about winning this gold, the first for Canada in a Canadian Olympics, without hestiation, Alexandre deflected the glory, and acknowledged his family, his brother who he adores and gets inspiration from as he battles cerebral palsy, the other Canadian athletes, the VANOC crew, the volunteers, the support program in Canada….in a nut shell, The Team behind him.
In all of the interviews I’ve heard with athletes, the team behind the athletes are always at the forefront. These athletes know they will not be on the podium if they don’t have a team behind them. What is very powerful is that they don’t hesitate to acknowledge this.
This is a critical lesson for business too. To be an on-goingly successful company, an empowered and multi talented, commmitted team is a must. You’ve got to know who you need on that team and how to hire them. With the right team, the uplift will be amazing!
