I love the Olympics. Ever since I was a kid, I looked forward to losing myself in television coverage of the event, inspired by the personal stories and achievements. There have been countless thrilling moments over the years, where individuals have shattered records and redefined their sports.
One thing that makes the Olympics special is that even those athletes who compete individually are also competing as part of a team. Being selected to represent one’s country at the Olympics is one of sport’s highest honors, and the team aspect to every competition is always front and center. In this way, the Olympics mirrors other endeavors that require great personal commitment within the framework of a team effort. The fire service certainly fits this profile.
I was thinking about this connection recently when I watched the documentary The Boys of ’36 about the underdog eight-man United States crew team that won gold at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. (There is also a book and a feature film on this topic called The Boys in the Boat.) The young men on the team, who represented the University of Washington, were all poor or working-class students who saw crew as a way to improve their lives, and in some cases, just ensure getting regular meals. It was the peak of the Great Depression, and the University of Washington did not register among the powerhouses of rowing – the Ivy Leagues, the University of California. The young men on the team were all intimately familiar with adversity and had none of the advantages of their competitors, yet they ultimately prevailed.
How did they do it?
Eight-man crew is one of the most interdependent team sports. Every rower must be in perfect sync with all others, and everyone must follow the direction of the coxswain. Trust among the teammates was critical as was the ability to recognize that they were part of something larger than themselves as individuals. Every rower had to have absolute confidence in his teammates, people who came from diverse backgrounds with widely varying personalities.
Leadership was a critical factor, too. The coach of this team was a highly skilled but taciturn man who sometimes had trouble making a personal connection with the crew. His style was balanced by the boat builder, described by those who knew him as a “sage” and someone who became a mentor and valued advisor to the young men. Likewise, the coxswain was a confident, disciplined and at times arrogant conductor whose style was moderated by the humble, quiet stroke-oar rower who set the pace for the others behind him.
Trust among diverse groups is earned through experience and joint effort. There is also an element of humility to it – that no one individual is more important than any other person. Individuals brought personal strengths, but these only led the team to victory when they were understood to be part of a greater whole.
The documentary includes original footage of the come-from-behind victory in Berlin, a victory that infuriated Adolph Hitler, who staged the Olympics that summer as a validation of his Nazi regime. The team that faced so many obstacles, up to and including the actual day of the race, prevailed because, as was stated in the film, “they achieved a goal through trust and brotherhood.”
There is a term used in rowing to describe when everything is working, and everyone is pulling together in harmony and synchronicity. Rowers call that perfect connection “swing.” I’m thinking that same kind of connection can be achieved in any team environment, such as what can be known as “a good fire,” when everyone is working well together, all members are valued, and everyone is focused on a goal beyond just themselves.
The Olympics demonstrates on a big stage how this kind of connection can lead to great outcomes. But that kind of achievement is available to any team, at any level, when there is commitment, inclusion, good leadership and unshakable trust.
