Champions

Champions

Champions aren't the ones who win 

Or always share the fame;

Champions aren't the ones who sulk

Or find someone to blame.

Champions aren't the ones who pound

Their chests if they have scored,

Or hang around a practice-time

And seem as if they're bored.

Champions aren't the ones who seek

The crowd's applause and roar

And expect the world to show

Up at their own front door.

I'll tell you what a champion is

And where he may be found:

His greatest greatness is unknown

To most who look around.

A champion may win or lose 

Without a thought of fame;

He finds his greatest thrill of all

Is just to play the game.

He won't acknowledge his own worth,

Would rather help the team;

He'll sacrifice unselfishly

To aid the common dream.

A champion won't hang his head

Or whine if he has lost;

He feels he is successful if

He's fought whate'er the cost.

A champion doesn't seek the fame

That comes with accolades;

He knows it dies eventually,

Won't last, but simply fades.

Far greater still will be the one

Who tries to do his best

Regardless of the final score, 

And leaves to God the rest.

True champions often hide behind

The ones who steal the show,

But these are gone before you know it,

Leave no lasting mark below.

A champion is content to know

The fact his legacy

Isn't in the stats and scores

But in the best that he can be.

For he knows that champions

Are those whose lives reflect

The longing for a greater good

Than just the crowd's respect.

He won't live in the public eye,

But may outlast the rest,

Who proves himself a champion

By giving it his best.