On Thursday 27 September 10 students along with Mr Trickey and Ms Hokianga attend the sports leaders breakfast with other Secondary School students from around Otago.

The guest speaker Tony Dobbs presented an inspirational talk around his life as a professional athlete. Some of the students have shared what they took out of Tony’s presentation.

Lucy Matehaere:

Don't buy into the social media accounts of world champions, they are not always happy. They go through the same ups and downs as we do.

Athletes display qualities such as determination, ability to stick to routines and willingness to work which are all key attributes employers are looking for.

It all comes down to who is best on the day. There are 60 athletes that line up on the start line in the Olympic triathlon. One year there are about 20 who could win realistically based on their fitness. One month out there are about seven and on the day there are three to four.

Make sure you keep friends outside your sport because your sport will not always be there for you.

If you don't make a selection, don't complain. Just train harder and let your actions speak for themselves.

Gemma Millar:

The key point that I took away from Tony Dodds talk was that you have to be prepared to put in the hard yards if you are wanting to be a professional athlete. He talked about how everyone sees the gold medals and the fame, but what they don't see is the hard work and the sacrifices that have to be made.