ATHLETIC HEROS Page 2

Heroes save lives in different ways. Many youths have had their lives changed or saved because they had a sports hero to look up to. Individuals who excel in sporting activities often do so because they go to the extreme with hard work and effort in their practise sessions. To excel in a sport like hockey, baseball, or swimming takes more than just talent. Leading athletes often set goals for personal achievement making the goal higher and higher until their feats are recognized by the general population as being well beyond the norm. Of course, brain and brawn go together and coupled with a little luck sometimes makes for a new sports record in not only a Canadian setting but perhaps also a world high mark.

Athletic heroes who excel in team sports never forget that the team's success is most important and each team member, in some manner or another, usually contributes to the overall accomplishments of the team. Certainly, one's attitude toward other players in a team setting can bring an otherwise mediocre player to be an important team member as a club leader. Some believe that the most appropriate slogan for athletic heroes is, "It's not whether you win or lose, it's how you play the game!"

Note: I was a hockey goalie who played at the time the goalie mask was introduced. I purchased a $5 plastic mask with 8 mm thick foam rubber inserts that served as shock absorbers. I used the mask until I took a shot directly on the nose which in turn squashed my nose and left it a bloody mess. After that, I went out and purchased a $25 Jacques Plante fibreglass mask which served me well. DJ