PND vs. Pekin - What is a "win?"
I have been meaning to post this article for a long time. I can honestly say that this was an impressive display of force. This is probably the most dominating victory over Pekin that I have ever seen.
Alas, at the time I am writing this post, PND can no longer claim this meet as a victory on their permanent record. This fact brings up some interesting thoughts about what the definition of "winning" really is.
Little hash marks below a W or L column may well be carried on our permanent record, but can those hash marks really measure our victorys and losses. At its most basic level, swimming is a sport where the fastest swimmers are the winners. In its most twisted manifestation, the victors are those who dance to the tune of logo sizes, eligibility requirements, policies, and those little hash marks.
I have always wished that I had enough hash marks in my W column to represent the speed, quickness, intensity, and committment of my athletes over the years. I believe that I have traded quite a few of those hash marks for a constant flow of swimmers who come to realize that the greatest victory is the achievement of their dreams.
posted by Shawn C. Ribordy at 8:54 PM
3 Comments:
Unless there is a new performance boosting clerical error, then this will always be a W. The athletes know what a win is is, the hashmarks are for statsticians and historians. Great job ND for the pure physical domination, boo to the pencil pusher that fell short of the mark, and another boo to the person that thought a victory could be undone by crying foul when there was none.
September 26, 2006 11:01 PM
Amen to you both. That is so true. We have a terrific team with a great team spirit and no matter what anyone tries to do, you can never take that away. Girls, as Shawn said, this is about achieving dreams, not about wins and losses. Like I said in the paper, no one can tell us we lost that meet.
September 27, 2006 10:05 AM
Sterling still thinks you guys are champions, that kind of respect from other swimmers and other teams is what you earn with your hard work. Great job!!
September 27, 2006 1:06 PM
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