Do you believe in miracles? YES!
42 years ago, those words marked a young Al Michaels conclusion to the call of the US v. USSR semi-final hockey game in the 1980 Olympics held in Lake Placid, NY, USA.
This game was not simply the victory of a sporting contest, it would later described by Michaels as the cold war played out on a sheet of glass.
1980 was the concluding year of Jimmy Carter’s presidency subsequent to his previous year’s “malaise speech.” Internationally, the 444 day Iran Hostage crisis which had commenced the previous November was well under way. Domestically, gas prices had continued to hold at their stratospheric level causing long lines throughout the nation at the gas pumps. Basically, America was feeling defeated.
And as to these two opponents, less than 2 weeks previously to this match, the New York Daily News reported:
Russian hockey team annihilates Team USA 10-3 in Madison Square Garden exhibition before start of 1980 Olympics in Lake Placid.
I was 10 years old at the time and remember going back home from school to see the conclusion of this tape delayed presentation of the game. It was incredible!
So, how did Team USA come out on top?
Someone much more knowledgeable than me can speak about the play of the puck and Team USA captain Mike Eurzione’s winning goal at exactly 10 minutes in and left to play in the 3rd period.
What is fascinating to me is the character of coach Herb Brooks.
Brooks was the last one cut from 1960 US Gold Winning Olympic Hockey Team.
Imagine being that close to greatness and not achieving it!
Well, it’s quite evident that Herb Brooks desire for Gold never waned.
No, whereas the majority of people would have just given up and settled in to life, he kept his dream alive.
And whereas he would not get a chance to skate for the Gold, 20 years later he lead his team of college hockey players assembled as a team a mere 9 months previously into what for at least that day was the greatest hockey team in the world.
See this was well before the 1992 Dream Team of professional basketball players during the era when Olympians were supposed to be armatures.
Technically, the Soviets were that as they were all in the army for their “day jobs.” But the reality was that their daily toil was to skate as a team. In other words, in all but name, they were professionals.
The odds of Team USA winning were some of the longest in sporting history and yet they did!
The reason, Herb Brooks was full of desire and he was able to supplant that desire and belief into the minds of each line and each member of Team USA.
This is exactly in accordance to that which Napoleon Hill indicates as the power of desire in his classic “Think and Grow Rich.”
Bottom line, to achieve a miracle, build your desire so much that through your own and the actions of those around you it becomes reality. So again …
Do you believe in miracles? YES!
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Have a great Tuesday!