Kottke shares an article written by Chuck Klosterman about how people want to see their sports heroes as human and that these heroes are remembered as much, if not more, for their lost of perfection as their attainment of it.
When measuring — and particularly when remembering — the greatest performances in the history of any sport, the moments that matter most are almost always tied to situations when that entity failed. Very often, those specific failures are the essential details people recall about dynastic achievement. The memory of perfection is inevitably tied to the memory of lost perfection.
But if they lose — especially if they lose late — the New England Patriots will be the most memorable collection of individuals in the history of pro football. They will prove that nothing in this world is guaranteed, that past returns do not guarantee future results, that failure is what ultimately defines us and that Gisele will probably date a bunch of other dudes in her life, because man is eternally fallible.
via:kottke
New York Times also had an article about perfection in sports before the game which the Patriots eventually lost where sportsmen shared about how perfection was an afterthought.
“I thought it was pretty good, but athletes don’t think about history when making history. They think about what they’re doing, and that’s how it gets done.”
The key for perfection is not to focus on it but to focus on excellence and prepare intensively to gain confidence and not be affected when things go wrong.
The sportsmen mentioned in both these articles seem to echo the same sentiment about perfection, one that Singaporeans who tend to be ranking-fixated should take note.
“The other teams you played scored points and your team made mistakes. Maybe a lucky bounce actually won you a game or two. No, winning doesn’t make you perfect.”
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