A few days ago one of the greatest Hungarian sport legends passed away at the age of 47. Tibor Benedek was a 3 time Olympic gold medal water polo player. The news devastated a whole nation and all Hungarians around the world. His early death feels entirely unfair.

He struggled with his health all his life but he still managed to become one of the best athletes in the world. His career is proof of the incredible power of the mind.

His words from his last interview are so powerful they may encourage everyone to keep working on their dreams even when circumstances are not ideal; even if they don’t have any outstanding talents.

He sent this message before he left:

Your talent is the mindset to win.

“I never had good ball sense, never played football, was never good at basketball, never threw too far and nowadays I throw even worse. I am not exceptionally strong nor smart, I don’t swim too well and my technique is completely average.

When I was a child I had paracentesis 11 times, the same number of times the doctor banned me from swimming pools. Looking at my height, today I am considered small among my teammates but I reached 100kg 15 years ago.

I have never been able to speak eloquently, my high school grades were mediocre, I have never thought my words could inspire others. I was exempted from the army due to spinal disc herniation, since then I have had 2 slipped discs in my neck and I’ve played with a wristband for 16 years, unable to support my bodyweight on my hands. I had heart problems in 2005 and again in 2009.

So what was I good at?

If I had to summarize the reason for my achievements, I would say that I always wanted it more.

That’s my talent.”

Image source Google