Monday evening, I watched Canadian Alexandre’ Bilodeau win the gold medal for freestyle skiing. It was nice to see Canada finally get the elusive gold medal in a home Olympics. However, I was even more impressed by the story of the Bilodeau brothers; 22 year old Alex and older brother Frederic.
Frederic has cerebral palsy, which has directly impacted the track of Alex’s life. As a young child, Alex’ sport of choice was hockey. That sport was a challenge for the family to manage, so Alex decided to try skiing. The rest, as they say, is history – Olympic history.
When the boys were young, doctors told the boys’ parents that Frederic would not walk past the age of ten. Yet, at the 
age of 28 years, he still can walk. This is one of the reasons that Frederick is Alex’s hero; everyday he pushes beyond the limits others created for him. Knowing that his brother is not only walking, but even skiiing, well beyond the years the doctors predicted, Alex said in a recent interview,
“So where’s the limit for each of us?”
Alex went on to describe how the personal qualities that Frederic relies on for his life are the same qualities that Alex relies on for skiing excellence. “Wicked determination” he calls it. Alex will not allow anyone to tell him he can only go so fast, so far, so high. Alex, like Frederic, will not let others set limits on his abilities and performance.
Another way that Alex is inspired by his older brother is the effort Frederic puts forth to do some of the simplest things – simple to most of us, anyway. The interview showed a clip of Frederic attempting to toss some trash into a trash can along a park walkway. He missed the first try. He picked it up and tried again, with great concentration and a will-do attitude. The second toss put the trash in the can.
Seeing the effort Frederic puts forth, inspires Alex when he sometimes feels less than motivated. He shared in the NBC interview,
“When I complain it’s raining and I don’t feel like going out to train…
[I think] What if I didn’t have the chance to go train? I have the chance and I will go train.”
What lessons we can all learn from Frederic and Alex. I invite you to consider this:
Who is putting limits on you and why are you allowing it?
What would be possible for you if you gave up the excuses for not doing it?
