Tertiary Studies or Life as a Professional Athlete?

I have added some thoughts below, to the email enquiry. Read from the “continuation in bold”. Its been a rewarding process of assessment and recollection for me personally. I look forward to more comments and input from you all.

“I want to go study Engineering but, after worlds I really believe I can race with the best in the world and I would really enjoy that, I am just a bit confused on what to do. Go study or go race?????” - an email extract from a promising youngster earlier today.

I personally dabbled with such confusing thoughts while at school, but a disaster (goggles snapping) at the Junior Worlds in Queenstown, New Zealand, helped the anti sport sentiment for some time. I figured the un-reliability of a certain result after a certain input was as suspect as farming. Neither of which appealed to me very much at the time. But by the end of my third year, I couldnt resist opportunity that had become more timely and placed my studies on egg shells and ice blocks to tempt the sporting hand of fate. A decision not taken lightly, a decision I trust I’ll never regret, and yet a decision that shouldnt be taken too seriously neither.

Thankfully my emailing acquaintance has another 12months left at school, and can explore professional mountain biking opportunities in South Africa more fully before having to make the decision to the left or to the right.

With that bit of context in mind:

Hey Mate, Thanks for the mail. Appreciate you looking me up and respecting my judgement enough to ask an opinion. Congrats on your racing of late, sounds its been a good year. Plenty I’d like to respond with, and perhaps a long ride together soon will be a better source of direction than this mail?

I feel for a start that it is a privilege to sense the opportunity you do, and I hope you’ll forcibly get your stars aligned some day, whether before or after uni, during, or just straight up after school, and get to experience life tocheering sound and bright lights. A chance to explore a God given talent, inspire others with, and a vessel to see parts of the world with.

The continuation:

I tried wholeheartedly to get out of Stellenbosch, out of South Africa toward the end of my final year at high school. Not for a lack of passion for the Oak Town, but for a burning desire toward change. Anything new. New races, new trails, new people. Conrad Stoltz and Anke Erlank were both based in the USA at the time and had won Xterra World titles on the same day in 2001. I can recall Anke edging me on to grasp the opportunity of them being setup in the USA and the money that was in the game. This was done under the study umbrella thought though, with an attempt made to enquire of scholarships.

It was an Australian, Deborah Hoare, who I emailed a similar email to as the one I now received, who shed precious insight on my wondering mind. My body was at 18 not that of a man. It could only do so much, and as I needed to play patience in the mean time, studying was a good call in doing so. For numerous reasons that is, one being a protection of longer term sporting ambition.

I have little doubt that had I tried to go the full time route earlier on it would have ended prematurely. The timing of such a venture, without federational support as in most South African athlete scenarios, is of utmost importance I feel. So much needs to be in place.

I had a brilliant time sleeping through many of my Bcomm Investment Management lectures, and enjoyed being a part of student life as a Matie. I never fully involved myself in all social possibilities, and considered practical challenges such as residence living incompatible with ‘semi-professional’sport. But this limited student life was great, and allowed me a pressure free, expectation free few years. And through the late night cramming at exam time I did broaden my realm of thinking, and although my degree remains incomplete, I laid the foundations for a future career/hobbie that I’ll return to in good time.

The hardest part is accepting you wont get as much from your studies as is when applied entirely. I believe whatever subject would be of equal reward to input, and my deposits were always at a bare minimum.

I’ve witnessed many different athlete paths, from the very successful never contemplated studying few, to the studied hard and now just playing for a year type, with everything in between. Another attribute to life in Stellenbosch. I needed to hear firsthand of training runs plotted through French markets to steal fruit from to survive, of battling to make ends meet, as well as see the millionaires of the game who drove luxury cars and got more than they could use ‘with compliments’. It helped the daydreaming on wooden class benches from drifting to far off.

Engineering was specifically referred to in the email, and I’d call that a bigger crossroad. Unlike a Bcomm or BA, the Engineering faculty keeps students in class for up to 40 hours a week – a load too much to balance with high performance sport. Perhaps my Carl Passio and Ashleigh Moolman can comment more specifically to this part of the discussion, as they’ve been cycling really well of later while spreading their engineering final year over 24 months. My guesstimation would be trouble though, balancing domestic racing with a heavy one like engineering. But it it’s the only studying choice, well then it’s a trickier equation.

I’ve tried to maintain since my decision of a 2 year full on attempt that the single measure possibility was financial viability. If I was to be the best in the world, but be financially starved to the bone, it wasn’t a possibility, and likewise, if 10th best, but financially prospering, it was possible. The business like mindset has of value, and I’ll continue using it as my yard stick while pressing forward with brand building and marketing endeavors.

Thankfully my young friend has another 18months before he would have to walk Stellenbosch’s streets for the first time should he choose to do so. Plenty time to explore the opportunities in South Africa, and test his physical and emotional desires before opting left or right at the fork.

But neither would be make or break either. I’ve seen success, as from my current top listed hero Burry Stander, who took the no-studying lay it all on the table route make a success, as well as Christoph Sauser who first completed a degree in some hectic engineering degree before going full time. Burry could go back and study later, and pursue a corporate career, and Sauser will in all probability never have to work again on retiring. Would either regret their steps to success and do it differently if granted a second chance, I don’t know.

(to be continued…)
P.S. - Much appreciate the commentary. In the counsel of many wisdom is found. So please keep presenting your input on the topic.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 19th, 2008 at 10:53 pm and is filed under Advice, Thoughts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.