Reminder

In 2004, after another competition, I was 17 years old. A journalist from a local newspaper called me at home to do an interview. He called on the home landline as I didn't have a mobile phone, just like the rest of my family members didn't. Among his questions were: "Who do you want to be like in the future?" and "Do you have a role model?"

I answered that my role model was Vladimir Putin. In reality, he wasn't a true idol for me, but I liked his image from the TV screen: the way he spoke and carried himself in public, and the fact that he started his sporting path with sambo and judo, just like me.

Now, 20 years later, my opinion has changed dramatically, and, I think, there is no need to explain why. Recently I accidentally came across a clipping of that interview. It was among my old sports diplomas and certificates. After rereading the text, I felt a strong sense of embarrassment, almost like "secondhand embarrassment," for the young guy I was when I answered the journalist's questions.

Initially, I wanted to discard that piece of paper. Not because the newspaper had misspelled my surname — it doesn't bother me now, although it did annoy me back then — but because today I would answer those questions completely differently.

But after some thought, I decided to keep the clipping. It reminds me that I can make mistakes, and I am probably making them in some way even now. This small piece of newspaper is now more valuable to me than all my sports diplomas. Making mistakes requires learning from them, and I sincerely hope that I will be able to do that for the rest of my days, and this piece of newspaper will serve as a reminder.

The photo was taken by the author, and his translation was done using Google Translate.