Jørgen Leth's Motivational speech

It is a machine. The machine must be running all day. You must dig deep and when you dig deep, you can be lucky to find gold. This is not a tea-party

Legendary Danish Tour de France commentator, movie director, poet, author and esthetician did the motivational speech on Sunday morning before Challenge Copenhagen.

Recapture the philosofical moments in the text coming from Jørgen himself.

To Jørgen from Challenge Copenhagen:

It was with great pleasure and humbleness we welcomed you on Amager Strandpark (to) early Sunday morning. We know you do not like early mornings, but still you were there to support the athletes and give them your thoughts on the challenges they were facing in the hours to come.

From the organization we wish to send you a big and warm "thank you" - and hope to welcome you back next year.

All the best

Challenge Copenhagen

*The primary text is in Danish, You can read the google translated English version below also.

** read more about Jørgen Leth

Kære atleter

Jeg er blevet bedt om at holde en motivationstale til jer. Men hvordan skal jeg kunne det på det her afskyelige tidspunkt og med min baggrund ?

Jeg kan ikke svømme, jeg hader koldt vand.
Jeg er for længe tid siden holdt op med at løbe efter noget som helst.
Jeg har ikke cyklet siden min ungdom, hvor jeg kørte lidt cykelløb.

Men jeg har forstand på cykelløb og det må blive mit udgangspunkt i dag. Jeg beundrer atleter som står tidligt op, og som dyrker deres sport til det ekstreme. Netop deres engagement, ikke det med at stå tidligt op, har jeg lært at værdsætte i den professionelle cykelsport, hvor rytterne fx kvæler sig selv på de stejleste bjerge.

For nylig har jeg så også fået et personligt indblik i triatletens hverdag. Det er jo en meget speciel form for vanvid. Jeg har været i selskab med min kommentatorkollega og gode ven Rolf Sørensen i Tour de France. Han brugte hver formiddag inden transmissionerne til at træne til ironman. Hver dag gjorde han noget forskelligt og så forskellig ud i påklædningen. De fleste morgener tog han sin specialbyggede racercykel, som jo klæder ham, og kørte ud på en længere tur.

Men nogle morgener chokerede han mig ved at sige, at nu skulle han løbe fx 30 km. Det var altid nervepirrende at vente på, om han kom frem til studietid. Men det gjorde han jo i reglen, sveddryppende og i værste fald kunne han tage den første stand-up i den mundering han nu havde været ude at træne i. Enkelte andre dage var han ude at svømme, hvor det nu kunne lade sig gøre i det knortede  Massif Central.

Jeg har undret mig over, hvad der kunne få en sportsmand, der i for vejen var en stjerne og en specialist på sit felt og som har haft en strålende karriere simpelthen – hvad der kunne få ham til pludselig at kaste sig over flere modsatrettede discipliner og et så uhyre krævende træningsprogram.
Det var som om han havde idømt sig selv en straf. Det man i teologiens sprog kalder en pønitense. Nå frem til sandheden gennem afsavn og lidelse.

Det minder mig om Leonard Cohen som tilbragte 7 år af sit liv i et zenbuddhistisk kloster – ja undskyld sammenligningen – men det førte jo også til noget. Der er noget meget smukt, har jeg altid syntes, ved at udfordre sig selv, flytte sine egne grænser. Det smukke ved det er ufornuften i projektet. Sportens inderste sjæl er ikke sund. Den handler om drama, testning af eget mod.  

Som jeg selv ofte har sagt det, så er cykelsporten ikke et the-selskab – og det gælder vel i lige så høj grad for ironman’en. Ordet ”ironman” – ja det minder jo uvægerligt om Schwarzenegger – terminator – destruktion. Man kan se metalflader flyve af kroppen. Et menneske der pisker sig gennem en oprørt sø. Et supermenneske. Mænd der slider benene af sig i et utal af vidt forskellige løbestilarter.

Og her i ironman-konkurrencen kan man jo med det samme udmåle kæmpeforskelle. Der er ikke noget med at komme ind i samlet felt. Den sprængning af gruppen som vi altid ønsker at se på de gode etaper i Tour de France, hvor de stærke skiller sig af med de mindre stærke, så snart det går opad. Ja den spredning, den sker jo umiddelbart i Ironman-feltet. Da er det sjældent, at man ser nogle følges ad. Det her er the lonely rider og ekstrem individualisme. Udskilningen er ubønhørlig og multipliceres netop ved ,at der er så store forskelligartede krav til atleterne i de tre discipliner.

Måske står jeg, når alt kommer til alt, ikke så langt fra triatletens inderste stjæl. Jeg forstår godt, hvad det er, der driver et menneske til at gøre det umulige – til at overvinde modstand – til at bryde barrierer – til at finde nye grænser – til at måle sig med sig selv og udfordre de andre. I denne kontinuerlige match. Der er man alene. Man skal finde stoffet inde i sig selv. Man skal grave dybt, som det hedder med et moderne udtryk. Og der kan man finde guld i form af at den dybe tilfredsstillelse ved at have drevet det vidt.

Held og lykke. Nu går jeg hjem og sover.

Google translated english version

Dear athletes

I have been asked to keep a motivational talk to you. But how can I at this heinous time and with my background?

I can not swim, I hate cold water.
I long ago stopped running after anything.
I have not cycled since my youth, when I ran a little race.

But I sense in cycling and it must be my starting point today. I admire athletes who get up early and grow their sport to the extreme. Just their dedication, not what to get up early, I've learned to appreciate in the professional cycling, where riders such as strangles herself on the steepest hills.

Recently, I also got a personal insight into everyday triathlete. It's a very special kind of madness. I've been in the company of my commentator colleague and good friend Rolf Sorensen in the Tour de France. He spent every morning before transmissions to train for Ironman. Each day he did something different and so different from the dress. Most mornings he took his custom-built racing bike, who dresses him and drove off on a longer trip.

But some mornings, he shocks me by saying that he was running for example, 30 km. It was always thrilling to wait if he came to study. But he did know the rule, sweat dripping and at worst he could take the first stand-up in the outfit he had been out to train in. Some other day he was out to swim, where it now be feasible in the gnarled Massif Central.

I wondered what could be an athlete, who in the road was a star and a specialist in its field and has had a brilliant career simply - what could get him to suddenly throw over several conflicting disciplines and such an extremely demanding exercise program.
It was as if he had sentenced himself to a penalty. What one in theology language call a penance. Well the truth through hardship and suffering.

It reminds me of Leonard Cohen, who spent seven years of his life in a monastery zenbuddhistisk - yes pardon the comparison - but it led also to know something. There is something very beautiful, I always thought by challenging themselves, moving its borders. The beautiful thing is unreasonable in the project. Sport innermost soul is not healthy. It's about drama, testing his own courage.

As I myself have often said that, then cycling is not a the-company - and that goes well in just as much for ironman'en. The word "ironman" - yes it reminds one inevitably of Schwarzenegger - Terminator - destruction. One can see the metal surfaces of the fly body. A man who whipped through a rough sea. A super human being. Men who wear the legs of one of a myriad of very different running styles.

And here in the Ironman competition one can immediately measure the huge differences. There is not anything to get into the overall field. The bursting of the group as we always want to look at the good stages in the Tour de France, where the strong discarding the less strong, as soon as it goes upward. Yes it spread, it is of course directly in Ironman field. Since it is rare that you see some follow through. This is the lonely rides and extreme individualism. Unbundling is relentless and multiplied just know that there are such diverse requirements for athletes in the three disciplines.

Maybe I stand, all in all, not far from triathletes inner steal. I understand what it is, which operates a man to do the impossible - to overcome resistance - to break barriers - to find new frontiers - to measure up to themselves and to challenge others. In this continuous match. There you are alone. You must find the substance in itself. You have to dig deep, as it is called with a modern expression. And you can find gold in the form of the deep satisfaction of having driven it far.

Good luck. I will go home and sleep.