Olympic Gold Medalist Nat Cook on NET

“The emotional strength, self belief and confidence I needed to win [Gold] in Sydney was heavily influenced by the work I did with Marcia. In the months before the Games, we dealt with a lot of emotional issues, many of which went back to my childhood. She helped me understand why I ‘froze’ in Atlanta [Olympic Games in Atlanta, USA 2000]. She ended up working with me every day in Sydney, on relationships, family, volleyball, everything.”

“We covered many different issues, but I want to tell you about three that I believe directly influenced the outcome of our quest to win a gold metal. The first issue related to the spectators who flocked to see us play. The stadium at Bondi was a fabulous venue, capable of holding 10,000 people. It was packed for every one of our games. The noise was incredible and the crowd was naturally and overwhelmingly pro-Australian.”

“Marcia was able to help me understand what had happened and prepared me, via NET, to draw on the energy for myself, without being sucked into those ups and downs. This made an amazing difference, and I found I could actually connect with the crowd and draw a positive response at crucial moments in the matches that followed. It made a big difference to my attitude and consistency.”

Excerpts from the book, Go Girl: An Inspiring Journey from Bronze to Gold by Natalie Cook with Robert Drake (Used with permission from the author). For additional information check out her website at www.nataliecook.com.