EKAITZ SAIES

Looking back at the Canoe Sprint World Cup in Montreal last week, a couple of my favourite moments happened away from the racecourse.

The first was discovering a new city, cycling around the Formula 1 circuit early in the morning before the team woke up, and experiencing everything that comes with bringing a big team to a new place.

The second was sitting down and watching football with the team.

We watched England’s matches against Mexico and Norway, and it was a great reminder of how sport has the power to bring people together. Different backgrounds, different roles, different experiences — but for 90 minutes everyone shared the same emotion.

While watching those games, I came across a story about the England football team that really stayed with me.

In 2007, a group of senior players — David Beckham, Gary Neville, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, John Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Jamie Carragher and Michael Owen — made a simple but powerful decision.

They decided to donate their England match fees to charity.

Of course, these players were already earning significant salaries through their clubs. The money itself was unlikely to change their lives.

But that was never really the point.

The point was making a conscious decision to use their platform for something bigger than themselves. They were not asked to do it. There was no obligation. They simply believed that representing their country was already the greatest reward.

Almost 20 years later, that decision continues.

We often talk about high performance through the lens of medals, rankings and results. But the strongest teams are built on something deeper. They are built on values and on the choices people make when there is no spotlight and no expectation.

Culture is not what you write on a wall. Culture is what you do when nobody is watching.

The legacy of a team is not only measured by what it achieves, but by what it stands for.

Winning inspires.
Character leaves a legacy.

And now, I’m looking forward to tonight’s match with my family.