Sports

Secrets of low-key, Super Bowl-winning leadership

February 6, 2013

Dick Cass, president of the Baltimore Ravens franchise which just claimed its second NFL title, runs a successful operation quietly, based on knowledge and skills but mostly on relationships. Here’s how it breaks down.

Playbook of a basketball king

January 31, 2013
You don’t win, as a coach, more men’s college basketball games than any other without being a phenomenal leader. Duke University’s Mike Krzyzewski is a leader who happens to coach basketball. He knows that his efforts and successes are about others, not about himself …

The original ‘Joe Cool’

September 19, 2012

From his childhood on the White Earth reservation in Minnesota through his career in baseball, Charles Albert Bender developed various pitches (maybe even the game’s first slider) and a reputation for dependability in the clutch. Bender never let anyone see him sweat …

 

Flight of fancy: When ambition soars

August 23, 2012

Everybody is happy to tell you about the importance of following your passion. Few let it lead their lives. A good example is Phoebe Snetsinger, the first person to see 8,400 species of birds, becoming a hero among birders while battling cancer.

Trudy Ederle went beyond world records

June 7, 2012

U.S. Olympic swimmer Trudy Ederle became the first woman to swim the English Channel, in 1926—and, briefly, the most famous woman in the world—for three reasons:

NASCAR’s Mark Martin’s inner drive

April 6, 2012

Here’s how NASCAR great Mark Martin stays fit as a box of lug nuts. Now in his 50s, he is still faster than most young drivers. His strategies are cleverer, as they were when he won a race in Michigan by conserving fuel and running out of gas only 500 feet before the finish line…

What Joe Montana learned from defeat

March 1, 2012

Football Hall of Famer Joe Montana bookended his football career with two spectacular failures. Both times, his passes were intercepted. Montana—who wrapped up his 16 years in the NFL as the only three-time Super Bowl most valuable player—offers these two exercises so you can overcome failure in a low-stakes environment.

Sampras: a champion’s truisms

January 27, 2012

Pete Sampras realized early in his tennis career that his opponent wasn’t beating him. Sampras was beating himself. It wasn’t just that he’d played badly, Sampras says now. “I also played without heart, which is a greater sin.” Later in his career, Sampras saw reality with rare objectivity. He lists five truisms as mostly fair and all realistic, starting with “You’re only as good as your last win…”

Shaun White: That’s how I roll

November 30, 2011

You’d be forgiven for expecting Shaun White to become a shill after winning a gold medal in snowboarding at the Olympics and more gold in skateboarding at the Summer X Games. Instead, the “Flying Tomato,” with his wild red hair and southern California style, took control of his image.

Gordie Howe, the Great One’s great one

October 26, 2011
They called him Mr. Hockey for good reason. He was one of the sport’s icons. “If people someday compare me to Gordie Howe, it will be the biggest compliment they could pay me,” says Wayne Gretzky, who broke several of Howe’s records. “If you ask me about my idol, there’s just one: Gordie.” Howe offers this advice to leaders: