'An athlete has to have a sense of narcissism'- Olympic champion Rai Benjamin
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Reading Time: 3min | Fri. 24.01.25. | 16:12
He laid bare the mindset of high-performing athletes in his podcast
Three-time Olympic gold medal hurdler Rai Benjamin believes that a sense of narcissism and self-confidence are necessities for any athlete.
Speaking on an episode of Beyond the Records, Benjamin laid bare the mindset of high-performing athletes.
The athlete hosts the podcast together with fellow gold medalists Noah Lyles and Grant Holloway.
“I always tell people in track and field you have to have an unhealthy amount of self-confidence and sense of narcissism to be good. You have to be that way, and if you don’t have those tendencies, you’re not going to be successful,” he said.
The episode featured Dude Perfect co-founder Coby Cotton as a guest, who chimed in to stress the importance of backing up that confidence.
Benjamin recalled witnessing Olympic 100m gold medalist Lyles’ entrance onto the track, a moment he described as exuding “unbelievable faith” and setting the tone for his ultimate triumph.
“When Noah came out of that stadium and he jumped around and they started cheering … you know it’s done, just give him the medal now,” Benjamin said.
Lyles who had been listening the entire time then shared his dramatic victory in the 100-meter final at the Paris Olympics on August 4. He explained the importance of confidence at that stage.
“Guys, y’all don’t know what it’s like to be on the biggest stage for the main event, like when the chips are down when you’re by yourself and there’s nobody else that can help you.
It is you and you alone, and you have to have that unbelievable faith that this moment was made for you because if you don’t, somebody else is going to take it,” Lyles recalled.
Lyles’ pre-race theatrics added another layer to his victory. Before the race, Jamaican rival Kishane Thompson had fired up the crowd with a Dragon Ball Z-inspired power-up scream.
Not one to be outdone, Lyles decided to command the Stade de France audience in his way.
“Before I go out, my coach is like, ‘Control the crowd, control the race.’ Nobody knows how to control a crowd like me, so if you want to go out and yell, that’s cool.
So, I’m coming out and doing the walkout and the cameraman is trying to keep me in one spot and I’m like, ‘You better get out of the way because I’m not here for you, I’m here for the crowd,” he said.
As Lyles hyped the crowd, their energy reached a fever pitch before the start of the race.
That electricity carried Lyles to a nail-biting finish, clocking in at 9.79 seconds to edge out Kishane Thompson.
“I love moments. The Olympics is a moment. Like you said, ‘It’s one moment.’ And it only comes around every four years. Why not make it the best moment anybody has ever seen? It’s gonna make you remember me when I do it,” Lyles said.
