Coach shows true strength
Published 12:01 am Friday, August 26, 2011
As the winningest coach in college basketball — men’s or women’s — the University of Tennessee’s Pat Summitt has been admired, reviled, respected and feared through the years like any successful leader in the dog-eat-dog world of college athletics. She’s been credited with raising the role of women’s athletics — not just basketball — because of the powerful program she built and the respect that followed.
So when Summitt, 59, announced this week that she has been diagnosed with early onset dementia, Alzheimer’s type, fans and foes were united in their support of her. Yes, united in sympathy, but even more so united in respect for Summitt’s decision to go public with her news. Her honesty and courage is admirable, and provides a glimpse of the strength of character that it takes to create basketball dynasties, and now, to face the future.
Public figures are not under obligation to discuss their health, or become spokespersons for diseases, but often when they do, it creates major awareness. Especially when a disease carries a stigma — AIDS and addictions, for example. Or ones deemed too embarrassing to discuss. After Katy Couric’s husband died of colon cancer in 1998, the “Today” show host underwent a colonscopy on live TV to encourage screening. Millions watched, leading to a 20 percent spike in colonoscopies in the years that followed, University of Michigan researchers found.
It’s impossible to calculate the sea change that Betty Ford brought to the understanding and treatment of alcohol and drug addiction, by admitting her own struggles, and through her subsequent efforts to educate and help others through the pioneering Betty Ford Center.
After the initial shock, Summitt, like most diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, was relieved to learn what was causing her memory loss.
Summitt’s decision to go public, and to continue coaching at this time, will create new awareness about the disease and its detection. The diagnosis isn’t an immediate death sentence, or a sign to throw in the towel and take to the rocker. People who are able to work are encouraged to do so.
Coaching takes a team and Summitt has surrounded herself with the best, so her decision to stay for now, and the university’s support of her, is a good example of how to handle such a situation. Summitt presents powerful motivation for her players this year, and she has time to handle the transition of her program to her assistants.
Summitt’s decision will allow the university and community to give her the proper retirement ceremony she deserves, a celebration of her achievements, which go beyond being the winningest college basketball coach in history.
