Written by What is Sports Culture? Well, as my good friend, Coach of 33 years, and accomplished distance runner Bob Costello puts it, “When you really start to understand it, you understand that it’s about the team, not just you.” Bob embodies that mentality to every extent, and after what he and I have fought through together … well, let’s just say I’ve earned the right to boast about him. (We’re currently “demolishing” a plate of nachos together at a pub).
Bob Costello has dedicated his life to distance running, caring for his friends, family, colleagues, and has been successful. Bob was a self-admitted lackluster athlete when he was younger. However, Bob turned a corner, when he didn’t get to travel to away track meets, as he says, “[T]alk about lighting a fire.” He went on to be sponsored by Nike, run 600 days in a row, and compete in the Boston Marathon 25 years in a row as well – talk about athletic success.
I feel implored to include a personal story. After becoming the first freshman to win our conference meet in the Pole Vault, and subsequently getting destroyed as a sophomore and learning a lesson on being cocky rather than being confident (and picture this, I am standing on the back of the runway crying while looking at the Pole Vault pit) Coach Costello walks up to me and says to me, a pole-vaulter, “Well, Jake, there’s always the two-mile.” It changed my life entirely. (Pole Vaulters don’t like running long distances).
So what is Sports Culture? So much more than just the competition; Bob Costello has proven it. A Coach that is willing to go above and beyond for their athletes – drive them to competitions in nearly a foot of snow, help them shovel snow off of the runway so that they can jump, stand up for them when they can’t do it for themselves (yeah, I’d keep going but the list would be too long). Thank you Coach Costello for embodying a true Coach, which exemplifies Sports Culture. Thank you for lighting my fire as well.
As always, from Bob and I, Cheers to Sport.
Pictured above: Coach Bob Costello giving advice to Jacob Hensh at the WPIAL Track and Field Championships in 2009