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Athletes must have God-given talent
– coaching, infrastructure won’t suffice
By Edison Jefford
Sports Development Director at the University of West Indies’ Mona Campus in Jamaica, Grace Jackson believes that God-given talent is one of the strongest links in the chain that connects the other facets to create successful athletes.
Grace Jackson
Jackson was speaking at the Guyana Olympic Association Award Ceremony Friday night at the Georgetown Club. The Jamaican Olympic 400m silver medallist said that coaching and infrastructure cannot suffice for God-given talent.
“You can run all you want, but if you don’t get that talent, you won’t be able to reach far. Talent is God-given talent and it is important to note that you have to go out and multiply and be able to do the best that you can do,” Jackson said.
The former world renowned athlete, who is also a scholar with two Masters’ degrees and respected sport analyst, made it clear that Governments can build infrastructure and hire a host of the best coaches, but that alone will not produce results.
Jackson formed part of the Caribbean Media Corporation panel in 2008 that successfully predicted the outcome of the Men 100m Final at the Beijing Olympic Games. Since then, Jackson has been sought after for her sharp insight.
She delivered the feature address as a guest of the Olympic Association. Jackson was one of the athletes that the Jamaican Government bestowed the Order of Distinction and is an active member on the IAAF Women’s Committee.
“If you sit down on it (talent), God will take it away, and then you will turn back and say: ‘the people aren’t helping me, and maybe in some cases, the Government not helping me and the association not helping me’” she warned.
Jackson used the example outlined in the Bible when the Master gave out talents to each of three servants and the one with the lesser portion buried his. When the Master returned he gave it back to him just as he had received the talent.
The Master stripped the talent from that servant and popular axiom was derived “he who has little, even the little that he has will be taken away and he who has more-more will be added”. Jackson used that to motivate the athletes present.
She said that it is imperative that athletes understand that it starts with them. And that it is on them to keep investing their talents so that it can grow from strength to strength. In the absence of that sacrifice, she says athletes cannot succeed.
“It is about what you have and what you are supposed to do. Athletes must have intrinsic motivation. You can have all the coaching in the world, if the athlete does not want to do it, it won’t happen. You have to be intrinsically motivated,” she said.
Jackson was seeking to dispel the belief that a local synthetic athletics track, as necessary as it appears, would somehow salvage track and field, and by extension, athletes. She said that would not be possible without talent and motivation.
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