As a kid I thought the only thing that really mattered in the Olympics was gold medals.
Silver was okay, bronze seemed like a crummy consolation prize. I had no idea why the guys who finished twentieth even bothered.
I’ve since realized my perspective was skewed by limited and somewhat biased television coverage. In those days we saw mostly the winning performances in only the most popular events, predominantly by Americans.
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Dachhiri Sherpa is the sole member of Nepal’s 2014 Olympic team. He took time off from his job as a bricklayer beginning in December to train for the 15 km cross-country ski race. He didn’t arrive in Sochi expecting a medal.
At age 44, this is Sherpa’s third Olympics. He was 94th out of 96 finishers and 92nd out of 95, respectively, in the 15km at the 2006 and 2010 Olympics.
“I think there is a very big chance I will finish last,” he said. “But the placing is not important if I can teach young people in Nepal about the Olympic spirit. This spirit is in my heart.”
Sherpa underestimated his ability. He actually finished 86th—out of 87 racers.
(You can watch a video here.)
There was a time when I’d have dismissed Dachhiri Sherpa and his efforts as a waste of Olympic snow. That’s the sort of foolish mindset that happens when you turn dreaming into a competition.
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Like each of the 3,000 athletes at the Sochi games, Dachhiri Sherpa has an Olympic dream. His particular dream has nothing to do with endorsements, cheering crowds, or medals. It’s about proudly carrying his beleaguered nation’s flag into a stadium. It’s about finishing his race, and telling children in his very poor country that it’s possible for them to dream as well.
He’s a poor man who quit his job for four months so he could train—not for glory or fame, but so he could return to his village and say to young people, “I am an Olympian, and if I can do it, so can you.”
That’s a God-sized dream, a dream with the potential to change the world for some kids who desperately need to believe in dreams.
Amazing what can happen when you choose to use your circumstances to tell a remarkable story instead of making excuses.
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