Olympic athlete turns setbacks into opportunities

Author: Sylvie Sparks
Published: Updated:
Olympic athlete
Margriet De Schutter. CREDIT: Going Deep for Vancouver

Elite athletes are in southwest Florida this weekend as part of the Champions for Health expo.

Thursday, they participated in a forum on Olympic issues, emceed by former Dutch professional athlete Margriet De Schutter.

WINK News reporter Sylvie Sparks caught up with her and told us more about how she turned setbacks into opportunities.

De Schutter dreamed of being an athletic champion since she was a little girl.

She dedicated her life to short-track speed skating and became an elite athlete in the Netherlands, but her career was cut short by injuries.

“I always heard that if you really want something, you can achieve anything, right? But I experienced that was not the case,” she said.

She had to say goodbye to her dream of competing in the Olympic games.

“What happens if it’s not true? That if you really want something, everything is possible, but what if it’s not?” she said.

The Dutch star asked herself two questions:

“What kind of information does this situation tell me? And, second, what could be positive about this situation?” she said.

By answering those questions, she turned what she calls her “failure” into success.

“I was able to make a documentary about this ‘failure,’ so I’d say, and we won an award with making this documentary about my failure, which turned out to be or it felt like an Olympic medal to me,” she said.

Now, she travels the globe, sharing her story of how to turn setbacks into opportunities.

“I always was focusing on that sports dream, but now it feels like this dream is even more beautiful, and it suits me even better,” she said.

That’s what brings her to Fort Myers, speaking at the Champions for Health expo.

“When I’m doing lectures, I would love to share with them, like please find your destiny or your passion. What are you passionate about? All those setbacks are just information to get you on the right track,” De Schutter said.

She is wrapping up her week in the area by sharing her story with Fort Myers High School students.

On Friday evening, she was at the Fort Myers sports extravaganza inside the art walk in Downtown Fort Myers.

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