Great Britain currently holds second place on the Rio 2016 Olympic medal table with a total of 51 medals: 19 gold medals; 20 silver medals and 12 bronze medals.
The success of Great Britain’s Olympic athletes comes at a time of great national uncertainty: It has been under two months since Britain voted to leave and there is still no consensus on what Brexit will entail.
Great British Olympians are demonstrating internationally how to successfully deal with pressure. Moreover, they form a national point of inspiration indicative of the potential that Britain has, and of how we can believe in a bright future beyond Brexit.
The aim of further unlocking the potential of Britain in the upcoming years will take place in a high pressured atmosphere that will largely be threatened by uncertainty.
Nicholas Creswell, VP, talent & development at Thomson Reuters, says: “Right now we can be inspired by those athletes who focus, give their all, and deliver – whatever the result may be. Anything that lifts our spirits in these uncertain times has to be a good thing – we need to be reminded that anything is possible, no matter what the challenge is.”
With great spirit and conviction we can face challenges that may not initially seem possible to overcome.
Creswell continues:
“If you’d told the UK in 1996, when we were 36th on the medals table, that by now we’d be 2nd, it would have seemed inconceivable. This reminds us that anything is possible when you set your mind to it. Good leadership requires us to never forget the power of a goal. Team GB set their sights on the most successful away Olympics: so they set their target one medal above Beijing, which was well below the London 2012 target. The moment we surpassed that, which was always likely, anything more indicated a runaway success. And success breeds success – so it simply builds more momentum.”
Success post-Brexit is dependent on us building positive momentum: momentum rooted in what our athletes have so profoundly displayed: focus, resolve and passion in the face of pressure; inspiring others to succeed; and aiming for higher than before.
The Olympics has given us an immense pride in the athletes representing Britain, and in the uncertainty facing us, we have an opportunity for us to feel pride in the nation as a whole.