Olympic Champion Melissa Belote Ripley: Goals for Gold, Episode 164

Today’s guest believes that goal-setting is a part of what led to her success.  Hear the path this Olympic Champion took to now Masters Swimmer. In honor of the this summer's 50th anniversary of when she brought home three Olympic golds, today we are joined by Melissa Belote Ripley. Melissa represented the USA at the 1972 Summer Olympics at the age of 15. She was the Olympic champion in the 100 and 200-meter backstroke and was part of the 4x100 medley relays, setting world records in these events along the way. She also made her second Olympic team in 1976 before she went on to swim at Arizona State, where she won six individual National Collegiate swimming titles and led ASU to two national championships. Melissa has also had an impressive career as a coach for many years before returning to competing in swimming at the age of 60. She has since gone on to win three US Masters Swimming national titles and six more national titles. In this episode, she shares her journey with us. Tuning in you’ll hear what inspired her to start competing again at 60, what commonalities Melissa has recognized in champion swimmers, the importance of believing in yourself even when you do not see results, and Melissa’s advice for setting goals. If you want to discover Melissa’s secret weapon that led to her success and get some mojo from this inspirational champion, tune in today!

Key Points From This Episode:

• An introduction to Melissa Belote Ripley and her impressive swimming career. 
• The success Melissa has had since she returned to competing in swimming the year she turned 60.
• In light of the 50th anniversary of Melissa’s Olympic victories, what this has meant to her. 
• How things in competitive swimming have evolved since the 1970s. 
• What inspired her to start competing again at 60.
• How an injury from her childhood is her greatest challenge currently.
• What consistent training looks like for her now.
• Melissa’s secret weapon that led to her success in swimming. 
• Why Melissa competes in master swimming, considering how few Olympians do.
• What commonalities Melissa has recognized in champion swimmers.
• Why goals should be stepping-stone goals, not far-reaching goals. 
• The importance of believing in yourself even when you do not see results.
• A key piece of advice for setting goals.
• Learn more about Melissa’s favorite things in the sprinter-round of fun questions. 
• A wrap-up of the top takeaways from today’s interview.

Tweetables:

“Consistency is the key to everything. You’ve got to be consistent.” — Melissa Belote Ripley [0:10:31]

“There wasn’t a day in my swimming career that I second-guessed what I was doing.” — Melissa Belote Ripley [0:15:15]

“I have always known where I’m going. Even from a very young age, I knew where I wanted to go to next. I knew how I wanted to get there. I had a path. I had major goals.” — Melissa Belote Ripley [0:21:38]

“I don’t have far-reaching goals, I have stepping-stone goals. And that’s the key!” — Melissa Belote Ripley [0:21:51]

“You have to believe in yourself. And when it gets really hard and you haven’t seen a best time in six months, you have to keep believing. You have to believe that you’re doing the work, that you’re putting the time in, and it’s going to turn around for you. ” — Melissa Belote Ripley [0:23:17]

Email us at HELLO@ChampionsMojo.com. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.