We all come to some turning point in our lives where we change direction and we do that through feelings, interests, and experience.
I have come to the point that I want to continue with something other than writing columns about sport and hockey, something that engages me a lot more.
During the summer the first insight came to me, but I gave this season a chance. However, I couldn’t deny anymore what I am feeling and what I want to do instead, therefore I choose to resign from my position as a columnist and give the place to someone else who is more engaged than I am.
It has however been a wonderful time and of course, a great experience to dig deeper into the game, expressing my thoughts to you, my dear reader, and to the audience out there, such as my thoughts were.
I have made a lot of great connections and friends through hockey, some I have learned to know deeper and some are just awesome, and I hope that those will keep in touch despite the fact that I won’t write about the game anymore.
On the other hand, the discussion about sports and hockey in the sphere of the social media such as Twitter has run out of everyone’s hand and mind.
It’s pretty much impossible to jump into or start a conversation that may keep any line of sense, as too many just want their voices heard. Nothing wrong with that, but it is wrong if the main goal is to make the voice heard and not adding an adequate thought about the game.
Needless to say that it feels tiresome.
And, it is hard to talk about the actual game, what’s happening on the ice and the very idea behind all actions on the ice, instead of the coach and players moving between the clubs and leagues.
Well, I leave it there such as it is and give some words of the Olympic hockey tournament in Pyongyang instead:
Of course, I followed the Olympic Games as much as I could follow despite a lot of other things that draw my attention:
I can agree that Germany’s road to the Olympic gold medal game was one of the best things that could happen to the tournament and for the game.
Germany broke the Northern and Transatlantic hegemony this time to knock out both Sweden and Canada from the path on their way to the final.
And they were, as we all could see, very, very close to making an even a greater upset than the victory over Canada in the semi-finals, but Kaprizov’s overtime goal ended the German dream of gold.
I am glad for Sergei Mozyakin’s sake that he achieved a gold medal at the end of his stunning career as one of the greatest and the most humble players we’ve seen the last 15 years on the ice.
Mozyakin is a true role-model for every youth on how to score and how to keep the mouth shut from yapping and let the game talk instead.
My last words:
I am going back now to being any random Joe and watching a game every now and then, but just as pure entertainment as it should be.
My last prediction on the hockey as a game in the future:
I think the game will endure as a great game for everyone if certain associations and leagues stop talking with sentences that start with “I” and begin every discussion with the word “we”.
As you may feel, the word “we” should be used as a starter in every other discussion in most of the subjects around the world, not only in sports and hockey.
But whether that ever happens, that’s up to all involved to choose.
Thank you, my dear reader, thank you for the hockey.
Whatever you want to do, do with full passion and work really hard towards it. Don’t look anywhere else. There will be a few distractions, but if you can be true to yourself, you will be successful for sure.
Virat Kohli, Indian athlete born 1988.
