Samsung's Spirit of Sport Contest

Samsung's held a Spirit of Sport Contest for ages 13 and up giving young athletes and their sports mentors a chance to win a trip to Salt Lake City to attend some of the competitions of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games.

Athletes Submitted 100 word essays on line at samsungelectronics.com about a mentor that inspired their love of sport and helped them pursue their sports dreams. They talked about why their mentor is special and why they deserve to go to the Olympics.

A mentor is someone who shares their own experiences with you so you can learn from their mistakes without having to go through the years of trial and error that they did to learn valuable lessons. Mentors can help you avoid some of their failures and frustrations. They can also save you a lot of time because, with many of your lifelong goals, you can sort of pick up where they left off. 

Samsung's focus on the value of mentors and the importance of sports in bringing people together is meaningful to me because I have seen first hand how special and helpful a mentor can be. I may never have started my sport if it wasn't for my older brother Todd taking the time to bring me skiing for the first time. Another friend and mentor, Nick Bass, shared some valuable information with me about my sport early in my career and privately coached me for years expecting nothing in return. His help was a major factor in my success.

If you're not afraid to ask questions, accept peoples help and seek out your own mentors, you too may get an Olympic Gold Medal someday.