BECOMING A
TRUE ATHLETE BY JEFF BUK ANTZ
OLYMPIAN’S BOOK OFFERS ADVICE FOR ATHLETES AND THOSE WHO SUPPORT THEM
LAURENCE CASSOE HALSTED, a two-time British Olympic fencer, takes us on a journey accurately described in the subtitle of his book, “A practical philosophy for flourishing through sport.” In Becoming a True Athlete, Halsted explains that his motivation for authoring the book is to help other athletes have a more positive experience of sport while helping overcome the inevitable obstacles all athletes encounter on their journey. He aims to achieve four things: • Challenge the current win-at-all-costs culture of the sport • Persuade athletes to think more deeply about the meaning and value of sports • Help athletes achieve more of their athletic potential • Give athletes a foundation for enhanced well-being as they go through their sporting career Halsted delves a little deeper into the role sports plays in the world and the need to get away from the win-at-all-costs mentality, which is commendable yet somewhat unrealistic for an athlete embarking on an Olympic dream. Respectfully to the author, this did not resonate with me, although I have the same dream that the athletic world would be a more perfect place.
44 AMERICAN FENCING B