When he was young, Aaron Scheidies dreamed of being a professional soccer player, but as his vision began to decline, his aspirations of playing soccer became unobtainable. He struggled with his mental health, and was eventually diagnosed with an eating disorder, depression, and OCD in high school. Eventually, he discovered swimming—at his big brother’s recommendation—and realized the path to becoming a professional athlete was still open to him. Now, at 40 years old, the eight-time Paratriathlon World Champion is a TrueSport Ambassador focused on helping the next generation of athletes develop resilience and persevere through challenges in life and sport. Here, he’s sharing a few important lessons he learned along the way.

When I started playing soccer as a kid after my big brother started playing, I just fell in love with it. As many kids do, I wanted to be a soccer player when I grew up—that’s natural when you’re young and you’re good at a sport and you love it. But when I was nine, I started losing my vision, and it got increasingly difficult to play. By seventh grade, it was becoming clear that I wouldn’t be able to play at the level I knew I could compete at if I had full vision. On top of that, during your teenage years, there’s a lot of ‘trying to be normal.’ I had to come to grips with the idea that I wasn’t ‘normal’ like everyone else. I found myself questioning everything.

At first, I tried to just work harder. But everything was becoming more difficult. Mentally, I was telling myself, ‘If I just work harder than everyone else, I can still compete.’ But at some point, if you don’t have vision, and you’re trying to play a sport where you have to see the ball, it doesn’t matter how hard you work or how much you train. It’s not going to be realistic to keep playing against people with full vision.

Looking back, I realize that perseverance isn’t just a linear progression. My perseverance in trying to play soccer despite failing vision wasn’t going to be realistic or fulfilling. And because I kept pushing, I fell into a downward spiral. I developed obsessive compulsive disorder, an eating disorder, and depression, and looking back, much of that was because I was trying to have control over things I couldn’t control.

We’ve been taught to think of perseverance as pushing through any obstacle, and we’re told that if you do that, eventually you win. That’s the success story of perseverance. But while I think perseverance is doing whatever it takes to conquer an obstacle, there has to be the caveat that sometimes you need to redirect your perseverance. You can still have perseverance in another direction and with another obstacle. When I hit my rock bottom in high school, that was when I started to understand that I couldn’t just keep going down that path of trying to achieve something that wasn’t possible. I’ve since learned to notice what I’m trying to control and ask if it’s working.

My older brother is the one who got me started on the right path after I hit rock bottom. He had been swimming for a couple years and encouraged me to try it. Because swimming is done in a standardized environment, I was able to participate in a way I couldn’t in soccer. And the freedom of being in the water had a calming effect for me: It gave me an outlet, a place where I could feel confident again. That brought me back to a better place mentally, and I was able to shift from this dream of playing soccer to sports that I could do, like swimming, track, and cross country. Naturally, that combination led to triathlon.

I was lucky that my parents were also supportive. They worried about my safety, but never sheltered me. In 1999, my senior year, I signed up for my first triathlon and I had never done anything like it before. By that point, while I still had some vision, I was legally blind and there were a lot of hurdles in order to compete. I hadn’t swum in open water and there was no guide for the bike or on the run, so we just did what we could to be prepared. My parents had driven the bike and run the course with me the night before, which helped me learn key landmarks. Without my vision, my memory has taken over as an enhanced sense, so I can remember where landmarks are and navigate that way. I knew where to position myself on the road because I could somewhat see the white line and the yellow line for the bike and run. In the swim, I couldn’t see the buoys, but I could follow splashes. The problem was that I got out in front… then, no more splashes!

I loved it. That first race was great. And that’s how I did triathlon for the first five years of competing, before I started racing with a guide. Most importantly, that race was a turning point. It opened a new door in sport and in life for me. When I went to Michigan State for college, I started the triathlon team there. That gave me another network of support, and surrounded me with people to train with and people who could work with me as guides as I started racing more seriously.

None of that would have happened if I had continued to persevere with soccer, or if I hadn’t been willing to look for something different. Part of the battle is just continuing to move and grow. Everyone needs an outlet to get out of negative thought spirals, and for me, that’s always been exercise and moving my body. Even now, as I’ve shifted to coaching rather than racing, I stay active and exercise is still my primary stress reliever.

Making the shift from high level elite level sport into coaching has been a challenge in recent years. Getting married and having a family with young kids made it easier to see that I needed to take a step back and look at my life as a whole to decide my next step. Even when you know you’re making the right decision, it’s a big mental challenge to step away from the sport. Finding the next goal to persevere towards led me to coaching, and that’s been hugely gratifying.

Ultimately, I believe that perseverance is a learned skill. It develops from facing obstacles and challenges, and learning how to navigate those obstacles. Sometimes you have to change the path you thought you’d be on, but you can still persevere on that new path.

Sport teaches athletes to deal with adversity

“Sport has shaped my life in multiple ways, but one of the most prominent ways has been through the various trials I’ve faced in sport,” says 18-year-old Olympic weightlifter Abby Raymond. “Every hurdle has given me an opportunity to grow and learn from my mistakes. Each setback has made me stronger by providing the opportunity to persevere, which in turn, has shaped my character.”

Even though the tough situations are uncomfortable, they also teach athletes how to be successful in sport and life. “I’ve learned everything I know today about sports from great coaches I’ve had in my life. And I’ve learned what not to do because of some bad coaches I’ve had,” says wheelchair curling Paralympian Steve Emt. “As long as you can learn from the good and leave the bad with the bad, you’ll be successful.”

Sport creates community

“Sport has changed my life for the better by providing an amazing community of other athletes, leaders, and coaches,” says Raymond.  For many young people, it’s been difficult to feel like they’re part of a community in the past year as schools switched to online learning and children weren’t allowed to spend time together due to COVID-19. However, many student athletes were able to stay connected to teams and coaches thanks to virtual practices, and this showed just how important sport can be when it comes to creating strong community ties.

“Being a disabled athlete, I’ve come across some incredible athletes during my seven-year career,” add Emt. “We all have different stories and have shown incredible resolve in overcoming serious life-threatening adversities. I love being around my teammates because they pick me up when I need it and inspire me to be the best.”

Sport teaches life lessons and values

“Coaches have influenced my life in and outside of sport by being intentional about the lessons and values they teach,” says Raymond. “I’ve been blessed with amazing coaches throughout my athletic journey thus far and each coach I’ve had has been intentional about making sure that the lessons they teach me at the gym can also be applied in life. The best piece of advice I’ve received from my coach was to trust the process and to aim for progress rather than perfection.”

Athletes can grow into role models

“Not long after I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at 16 years of age, I joined a team with other cyclists living with type 1 diabetes and that was a turning point for me,” says Mandy Marquardt, a professional cyclist for a global all-diabetes professional cycling team. “Finding Team Novo Nordisk changed my life—having the support system of people who understand what it’s like to follow your dreams while managing your diabetes is really special.”

“Sport has given me a platform to help others. Our team works to inspire, educate and empower everyone affected by diabetes,” says Marquardt. “I’m grateful to do what I love, give back, and change people’s lives in a lot of ways. I strive to be a role model for young children, as well as a role model for people with diabetes, and inspire them to live life to the fullest. Being an elite athlete is a full-time job, and managing diabetes is 24/7, but I wouldn’t’t wish for it to be any other way.”

Sport teaches work ethic

“Sport has taught me the importance of hard work, teamwork, and participating in something that is bigger than yourself,” says Emt. “I couldn’t imagine life without sports of some sort. Everything I learned at an early age was from participating in some sort of sport. I learned that I needed to work hard because others on my team depended on me. This lesson has stayed with me to this day.”

Sport teaches the value of losing

“My first curling coach taught me all about the sport of curling, and more importantly, how to be a man off the ice,” recalls Emt. “Before he and this sport came into my life, I needed to WIN. Tony, and this sport, taught me that is not possible, and that I needed to enjoy every second out there on the ice and every second when I come off. After every game or practice, no matter how I did on the ice, Tony was there with a big hug waiting for me. Tony taught me about life…curling is just a sport.”

“My coach Andrew Harris with Edge Cycling understands life outside of sport too and is fully invested in each athlete on the team,” says Marquardt. “He likes to say, ‘Winning is a lot more fun than losing, so let’s have some fun.’ It made me chuckle when I first heard it: It isn’t always about winning, but ultimately having fun and enjoying each and every day of putting in the work. As long as you show up and do your best, you’re a step ahead.”

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Takeaway

Sport is often reduced to conversations about tactics and plays, talent and skills, and winning and losing, but it’s so much more than that. It’s a life changing experience for a young athlete whose character is often shaped by the lessons they learn on the field of play. With the right coaches and support, sport has the power to shape resilient, courageous, and healthy young people who find success on and off the field.

Having found success in sport from a very young age, King quickly learned the importance of being a good winner, from competing clean to being sensitive about the emotional state of competitors. Her journey to winning the right way was supported by parents, coaches, and friends who kept her grounded, strong, and committed to integrity above all else.

Watch to learn more about King’s approach to success and winning the right way.

“Two and a half years ago at World Championships, one of our greatest American athletes – who’s still very competitive – told me that she was just running for fifth and hoping for a medal upgrade 10 years down the line. That is unacceptable. She needs to be able to have that moment, in the moment,” said Kara Goucher, two-time Olympic long-distance runner and World Championships silver medalist.

The sting of a lost moment is a feeling Goucher knows all too well, having been denied a silver medal podium moment at the 2007 World Championships. She stood on the bronze medal tier of the podium in Osaka, only to be awarded an upgraded medal in the 10,000m race 10 years later, after her competitor was finally disqualified for doping.

The ‘win-at-all-costs’ culture that now pervades fields and courts around the country is far from the positive youth sports environment that Goucher experienced growing up. In her Northern Minnesota hometown, Goucher didn’t hesitate to participate in a variety of sports and activities. She danced, played soccer, baseball, tennis, basketball, and even tried swimming and cross-country skiing.

When it came to running, though, her innate talent and a shared interest with her grandfather made the sport an easy favorite.

“My grandpa was a life-long runner and he took me out for my first run – it was something we did a couple times a year. He would take me to a race here and there. It was our thing.

And when I was in junior high, I decided to join the cross-country team, and I loved it right away. I loved the comradery and the teammates, and the further we went, the better I seemed to be.”

That teamwork and dedication to growth are values that Goucher’s coaches fostered throughout her youth sport experience.

“During my senior year of high school, I wasn’t running particularly well. I was expected to win the state cross-country championship and I didn’t, but my team won. I remember being so happy that we had accomplished it together – that’s really what I think about when I look back at youth sports.

It’s about teammates, that experience, and the sisterhood. I think I was lucky because I had a great experience with being on a team and feeling those friendships early on.

It helped me realize that even though there were big goals that I wanted for myself, it is just a sport. At the end of the day, there’s so much more than just my world. I would have loved to have won that last state title, but it was good to realize that there was so much more to it than just my own success.”

As Goucher progressed through her high school and college athletic careers, she achieved plenty of individual success too. In 2000, she and her team both came in first at the NCAA Cross Country Championships. Later that year, she also became the only collegiate woman to compete in the 5,000m final at the Olympic Trails, where she finished eighth overall.

Along with the excitement of competing on the international stage as she progressed, Goucher also faced a rude awakening about a darker side of sport.

“Growing up as a youth athlete, I had no clue that there was a different side of sports. I had never heard of steroids or performance-enhancing drugs. I watched the Olympics in awe like everyone else. I had no idea that there was another side to the sport.

But, around my sophomore year of college, I met one of my idols at a track meet and I started crying because I idolized him my whole childhood. Then my coach told me, ‘Oh, there’s actually rumors that he tested positive before one of his races at the Olympics.’ I was absolutely crestfallen by this news. I had never thought about that. Then, I started to learn more, but I will never forget that first time [I learned about doping in sport]. It was devastating.”

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While she didn’t know it at the time, Goucher would be directly impacted by this devasting, dark side of elite competition as she raced at World Championships in Osaka.

With the temperature in the upper 80s and the humidity hovering around 90 percent, Goucher went into the race thinking one thing: “Wow. This is an opportunity to do something.”

As the race played out, Goucher found herself sitting in fifth place with two laps to go. As another lap went by, Goucher recalled, “The top two were away from us, but it was myself, Jo Pavey, and Kim Smith, and I started thinking one of our lives is going to change forever. One of us is going to go home a medalist in this event that has been dominated by the East Africans. I just was having these thoughts like ‘You just have to just die trying.’

With 200 meters to go, if Jo Pavey had fought me off at all, I would have crumbled. But she felt me coming and faltered a little. I ran in and won the bronze and I couldn’t believe it. I was going crazy. I was pushing over the top two getting my American flag – it was crazy.”

Thinking back to that day – with what she knows now about her competitors – Goucher shared, “There were definitely red flags about one of the women, but we were drug tested immediately after the race. We were blood and urine tested and we were given our medals and life went on. I never thought about it again. Honestly, I just thought how lucky I was and how much it changed my life in such a positive way.”

After that event, she continued to race the only way she knew how: as a clean athlete. As time went on, she became more and more aware of the prevalence of doping in her sport, but never let that effect the way she raced or viewed sport.

“I know there are so many races I ran that were not clean on the track and in the marathon, but I still love the process. It made me realize it has to be a choice about yourself and seeing what you can find from yourself, and not being necessarily defined on medals or wins because you don’t have control over what anyone else is doing.”

Receiving a silver medal a decade after she truly earned it gave Goucher more insight into what really matters about that moment and what she can do to prevent more lost moments.

“In a weird way, I felt like I appreciated it more 10 years later than I did 10 years earlier when I was in the thick of it and it was always more and more and more. Now I was definitely done with the elite side of racing and I had this last taste. But it was also bittersweet because Jo never got to stand on a podium during her career.

I’m glad that it was acknowledged that we weren’t given what we deserved on that day. I feel very grateful that it was acknowledged, but 10 years later, it didn’t change anything for us.

We never got to have that moment. We never got the financial gain. It wasn’t on our resume when it mattered, and I don’t want that for anyone else.

It’s really taught me to care about the next generation. It makes me want to fight harder to make sure that this doesn’t happen anymore. If it does happen, we’re turning it over so much quicker so people can actually still be competing and able to say, ‘I’m a bronze medalist, I’m a silver medalist, or a gold medalist.’”

Goucher’s continued fight for what’s right has turned her into one of the outspoken advocates of clean sport. And as she looks at the next generation of athletes coming into the elite levels of sport, Goucher can’t help but think about her own youth sport experience.

“Part of it is the community that I grew up in. There were no shortcuts. We took what we were – if we weren’t the best, we weren’t the best, and we’re going to go back home and try a little harder. We are going to celebrate the people that were the best.

We learned it’s okay to not be the best, to find out you’re not the best, but it’s not okay to be the best by shortcuts.

I worry about the next generation. It makes me feel like I have to keep fighting to uphold the integrity of sport. I have the energy to do it now. I’m not trying to make an Olympic team anymore, and I feel like I owe it to them to fight for them.”

Marquardt, who won two USA Cycling Junior National Road Champions in her first year on the competitive cycling scene at the age of 10, told TrueSport, “Type 1 diabetes has impacted my life in a positive way because from such a young age, it’s made me a better person – more accountable and disciplined. I don’t know what my life would be like if I didn’t have type 1 diabetes. I’m not looking back and saying I wish that it was different. This is who I am and I’m hoping to impact more people while I’m reaching my dreams to hopefully be in the Olympics next year.”

When Marquardt was diagnosed, she was 16 years old and living abroad in Germany with her father. The doctor told her that she would never be able to race at a high level again. But that didn’t stop her from trying.

“After I was diagnosed, I was overwhelmed because I was only 16 and I thought that was the end of my career. But I competed at nationals [in Germany] later that same year and won bronze while managing my diabetes. I still knew I had so much more work to do, but it was cool to prove to myself that I was able to do it,” said Marquardt.

Finding that strength and confidence did not come to Marquardt overnight.

“In Germany, at the time, I didn’t feel like I was accepted. I felt like I was different. A lot of coaches didn’t talk about it, or ask me about it,” said Marquardt.

After her bronze win at nationals in Germany, Marquardt headed back to the U.S. to finish her senior year in high school and spend time with her mother.

“She was there to help me through that turning point to get me back on my feet in racing,” explained Marquardt. “There were times I was motivated, and there were times I wasn’t. So [my mom and dad] were a big part of helping me.”

“It brought my dad and I closer together. He knew my potential and sometimes I would get lazy. So, he would push me a lot,” added Marquardt.

In addition to the support from her parents, Marquardt discovered a whole community of strength when she joined Team Novo Nordisk.

“I found Team Type 1, which is now Team Novo Nordisk, the all type 1 diabetes cycling team that I race with. It’s the world’s first all type 1 diabetes professional cycling team. It’s an amazing community. We’re so supportive of each other and always give each other tips and encouragement.”

Marquardt has been with the team for 10 years now and attributes her courage and confidence to the growing community of support that she’s found in them. She continues to be an engaged member of their mission to “inspire, empower, and educate people affected by diabetes, whiled doing what [they] love, and showing what’s possible with type 1 diabetes.”

Marquardt is not only an engaged competitor for Team Novo Nordisk, but she is also a mentor for a young cyclist, McKenna McKee.

“She’s 16 years old and she’s racing at the top level nationally. She has big goals to join Team Novo Nordisk someday and that’s inspiring. I feel like there’s a sense of purpose to why I have [diabetes], even just to communicate my diabetes and educate people and have those conversations has opened up opportunities to reaching my goals. And impacting other people is that much more fulfilling for me.”

When all is said and done, Marquardt wants young athletes who face adversity to “get out of your comfort zone, because it will make you a better person – whether that be in sport, or in school, or in your career someday.”

Jocelyne explained, “If we were only worried about gold medals, I think our opportunities would be short-lived and our impact would be even shorter.”

Having grown up as the youngest siblings in a house with four older brothers, their childhood demanded grit and determination in every aspect of life. It was that foundation of healthy competition that encouraged the twins to be their best and strive for excellence all of the time.

“We were always so motivated from such a young age and I think that’s something that really set us apart from our peers growing up,” said Monique. “Working hard and always trying to put our best foot forward was something that our dad and our mom instilled in us. We always had to work hard and be at our best in order to keep up with our older brothers.”

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With that hard work, both Jocelyne and Monique found success on the ice, but there were times when the twins faced self-doubt and moments that could have torn them apart, from each other and from the sport.

“In 2009, Jocelyne made a four nations team that I did not make,” said Monique. “That’s the only time in a national team setting that we have not made the team together. But it was never a question of: ‘Am I good enough to make the team?’ I could have allowed it to be extremely detrimental to my attitude or what I thought I could accomplish. But instead I thought, ‘Okay, I’ve just got to keep working at it. If she’s good enough, I’m good enough. I just have to be patient and the opportunities will come.’”

Jocelyne added, “That’s a true lesson in where confidence comes from and it comes from the day-in and day-out preparation of trying to win a gold medal. You can’t fake it in those moments. You’ve either put in the work or you haven’t. You have to be able to look within when things aren’t going well or you’re dealing with adversity.”

It’s that type of growth mindset that often separates an athlete from a leader who makes a difference beyond their sport. In 2017, the Lamoureux twins channeled their leadership to spearhead the women’s national hockey team’s fight for fair and equal treatment by USA Hockey.

Monique explains, “When we went through our gender equity battle with USA Hockey…during that time, our parents asked, ‘Well, what if you guys don’t come to an agreement and what if you lose your opportunity to make another Olympic team?’ The simple answer that we had was, ‘Well, I can go to bed at night and rest my head on my pillow knowing I did the right thing.’

It’s almost as simple as that when you’re looking at taking a risk. If you know that you’re doing the right thing for the right reasons, then you’re making the right decision. If you go in with that mindset, then I think it makes it easier to take that risk and that leap of faith.”

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Taking risks for the greater good is something the Lamoureux twins plan to continue. Most recently, they started the Jocelyne and Monique Lamoureux Foundation to support funding of educational and extracurricular programs for kids in need in their home state of North Dakota.

“For us, it’s always about what can we do to help the next generation coming through, so they don’t have the same struggles that we’ve had as a program,” said Monique, reflecting on their success negotiating with USA Hockey.

Jocelyne added, “We’re very proud to be part of the growth and that there’s more opportunities than we had growing up. Hopefully our advocacy for gender equity and our role with the contracts with USA Hockey has inspired more girls to get into the sport and has also created more opportunities and longevity for young women who want to pursue the sport beyond just youth levels.”

Growing up as the youngest of three children, Margalis followed in her siblings’ footsteps and began swimming as a child.

“It’s something that just happened because of my older siblings. I had to go to the pool with them every day, and for a long time I wouldn’t get in. I would just wait for them to be done and then we would go home. Finally, another girl got in to swim and one day she got me to get in the pool with her, and then that was pretty much it.”

Margalis’ older siblings, Robert and Stephanie, were both accomplished swimmers who went on to compete in college. Watching Robert at the University of Georgia and Stephanie at the University of South Carolina was the start of Margalis’ expectations that she too would have a future in college swimming.

“Having my older siblings that were eight and 10 years older than me go on to swim in college when I was just a kid influenced me in thinking, ‘Oh this is what you normally do. Right? You do a sport and then you go to college and then you do that sport,’ which I don’t think is really the case. But as a kid, I just saw that, so I thought, ‘Yeah, that’s what you do.’”

Margalis attended her brother’s alma mater and began swimming for Georgia, where she faced the expectations that came from being ‘Robert’s little sister’ and being on a high performing college team.

“I felt that I had to prove to the coaches that, ‘Hey, I’m this swimmer. He was that swimmer, but I’m this swimmer.’”

On top of breaking out of Robert’s shadow, Margalis struggled to find her own identity and define success on a new team.

“One of my coach’s parting words to me before I went to college was: ‘The swimmer that you are right now doesn’t mean much to Georgia.’ I thought, ‘Okay.’

He continued to say, ‘It’s a really good program, and they have really great swimmers there. You really have to go there and prove yourself. Remember that. You have to go there and work really hard to be a part of the team.’

I wanted to prove that I could be a part of the team when I went to Georgia.”

Margalis grew as a swimmer in the Georgia pool, which wasn’t a feat she achieved alone.

“My teammates really helped me overcome a lot. They would mention that they’ve seen the work that I put in, and it helped so much.

Back in 2016, one of my teammates said, ‘You’ve done everything that you can do to make the team, and I have full confidence in you to make the Olympic team.’ That helped me because you can feel in yourself, ‘Yeah, I’m doing everything that I need.’ And, it’s that little reassurance from other people to make you realize, ‘Wow, they see it too. They’re noticing it too!’ Having my friends and teammates encourage me like that has been so important to me over the years.”

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With all of this in mind, Margalis was able to define her own expectations and understanding of success.

“I know when I stand behind the blocks, and I’m confident and I feel like I’ve done everything, that’s when I’m thriving the most in my races.

I believe so heavily in the mind–body connection, and I believe you tell yourself in your mind that you can do something, your body’s going to do it. Especially in practice, too. Sometimes we’re doing crazy practices, you have to think, ‘No, I can do this.’ Once you realize how much the body and mind are connected, it’s all about positive self-talk. Keep the mind-body connected, keep that mental toughness, and it will all keep working in your favor.”

Margalis acknowledges that not every day is going to be a good day when you’re training and not every race will give you the results you want, but even in those tough times, hard work and perseverance are the expectations that usually pay off.

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“How you think and how you really present yourself when you’re down is what’s going to help you build yourself back up. Don’t think that just because you’ve had a bad week of practices that your whole sports career is over.”

Speaking from experience, Margalis’ advice for young athletes is to shift their mindset when it comes to high expectations and feelings of failure.

“For young athletes who feel like they’re having a setback or feel like they’re not achieving the results that they want, remember, your hard work is always going to show at some point. It might not show when you’re expecting it to, but your hard work never goes away.

I’ve had years when I don’t go best times at my best event, but I know that I worked to be better than what I’ve been. I don’t give up on it. I always believe in myself. And the belief in yourself is what’s going to keep pushing you forward. You might have one season where you’re off, but that doesn’t mean that you’re never going to have an ‘on’ season again. You just have to keep pushing forward.”

Overcoming expectations might seem like an enormous mountain to climb, but as Melanie has demonstrated time and again, especially with her gold medal performance at the 2016 Olympic Games, it’s possible to go above and beyond.

Former USA Volleyball National Team member and TrueSport Ambassador Candace Vering is the product of a positive sport environment. From the youth level through her time on Team USA, her experience taught her how to focus and remain tenacious when it came to setting and achieving her goals.

“Early on, my parents were so encouraging, and I was lucky they always supported me. They were always telling me they were proud of me no matter if I won or lost a match, and they never put any extra pressure on me to win a game or to even play.

They were the ones who first taught me that I had a choice with how I was going to react to any situation. They were a huge influence on the attitude that I had and the type of teammate that I became, because I learned that trying your best, having a good attitude, and having fun were the most important things. That never changed, even as I went from high school to college to Team USA…they were always telling me to remain positive.”

Vering grew up on both the volleyball and tennis courts as her parents were active recreational athletes. She joined her first volleyball team in the third grade, giving her a first taste of teamwork. It was that comradery on the court that drew Vering to pursue volleyball in high school and college. But the transition from high school to collegiate-level sport wasn’t easy.

“Going from playing in high school to playing in college was a really challenging time for me. I remember feeling really overwhelmed at first because there was so much that I had to learn. The speed of the game was a lot faster. I had to learn completely new passing movements and new defense systems right away. I was also expected to get stronger physically in order to last in those five set matches. And, that was just the first couple of weeks in college!”

The challenge of being thrown into a completely new environment at the University of Washington didn’t only effect Vering’s physical conditioning, it also took a toll on her mental game and the confidence she had on the court.

“I remember doubting whether I could even keep up and play at the college level. But I’d always had a positive attitude and I was going to work hard no matter what. I focused on the goals that my coaches gave me and took it one day at a time. By doing that, I started to rebuild my confidence on the court, and I ended up having a really fun time in college and having a great college career.”

Vering’s hard work and consistent performances in college soon earned her a spot on Team USA…an experience that once again pushed her to become a better player, teammate, and leader.

“Playing on the national team was an incredible opportunity. I was really excited to not only be in the gym with the best of the best, but I got to learn from all these new teammates and new coaches.

All of them were great leaders on their college teams – there were a lot of vocal leaders, but there were also the leaders, like me, who like to lead by example. But all of us had the same passion, we all wanted to get better, so by focusing on how to be good teammates to each other, we were all able to mesh together and find different ways to lead on the court.”

The singular focus and tenacity that Vering honed during her time in college helped her work through the pressure when it mattered most.

“In college, I learned not to look sideways, which meant not to compare myself to the other liberos or to the other players. I just needed to stay in my lane and focus on the goals that they [my coaches] had put in front of me.

If I could take it one day at a time and try to improve just a little bit each day, I would definitely make progress. That advice helped me persevere even through the times when I felt like I wasn’t performing that well.”

Even as an elite athlete, it’s impossible to perform at your best all the time, but the beauty of sport is that it makes athletes stronger – physically and mentally, on the court and off, and in the short-term and long-term.

“Sport has always taught me the importance of preparation in order to bring my best game to the court. If I really did my best to prepare – mentally, emotionally, and physically, and I gave my best effort every time I stepped onto that court, then I could leave a match having no regrets.

Through sports, I’ve also learned that mental toughness, focus, tenacity – all of those are so important in every single other area of your life.

You’re going to struggle at work, you’re going to struggle in school, and it’s going to be up to you to choose how you’re going to push through those situations and what attitude you’re going to choose to have when it comes to being in a tough situation.”

As Vering’s role has transitioned from athlete to parent of a young athlete, her perspective on sport remains the same.

“I’d remind young athletes that sports will always have its ups and downs, and it’s the athletes that push through those tough times, those are the kids that are going to make the most improvement, make the most progress, and end up reaching their goals.

I would also encourage kids to realize that setbacks are just another time to learn and grow. And, if they can see failure as an opportunity to learn, then they can stay positive and keep pushing through every single tough time that comes their way.”