Champions invariably have fervent philosophical beliefs.  Philosophy, in its simplest terms, means “the love of wisdom.”  Peter Vidmar is a lover of wisdom.  His philosophy is “There is always fear.  The trick is not to eliminate it, but to overcome it.”  Peter finished his successful career at the 1984 Olympic Games. As the USA men’s gymnastics team captain, he led his teammates to America’s first team gold medal with their stunning upset victory over the defending world champions, the People’s Republic of China. He went on to win the silver medal in the individual all-around competition (the first American to have ever won an Olympic All-Around medal), and with a perfect score of 10, he captured the gold medal on the pommel horse.  But that is not how his sports career began.

As a youngster in Los Angeles, Peter grew up loving sports but feeling very frustrated because of his small size.  He said it was hard for him to be an asset to a team because of his size and, in reality, he felt more like a liability.  When he was eleven years old, Peter wisely decided to pursue a career in gymnastics where his small size was not a negative.  As a matter of fact, based on who had been winning the gold medals, small people had some advantages.

Peter was inspired by watching video tapes and television spots of Olga Korbut and Nadia Comaneci.  He became convinced that if they could succeed, so could he.  He worked very hard in gymnastics throughout high school and won a scholarship to U.C.L.A.  At one point Peter was the top-ranking American in world class gymnastic competition.  He captured the prestigious America Cup with an incredible 59 out of 60 points in six events, which was the highest American score ever. 
 
Peter’s coach made a strong - and to some people, surprising - statement to People Magazine when he said that “Peter is not particularly talented.  I’ve had boys who were more gifted physically, with more kinetic awareness, strength and flexibility.  But Peter surpassed them all because of his singular determination.”  Peter was so determined, his coach recalls, that he practiced one move for four years before he could successfully perform it. 

Message: Whatever your goal, if you have singular determination and persistently press towards your objective, your chances of succeeding go up dramatically.  Easy?  No.  Worth it?  Yes.  I believe that if you’ll go after your goal with the determination and commitment of a Peter Vidmar, I will SEE YOU AT THE TOP!