Donaldson: Great Athletes Embrace Failure, But How?

SALT LAKE CITY – If you want to succeed at anything, you have to have something that not many want to celebrate – the ability to embrace failure.

One aspect of sports that I’ve always been fascinated by is how – and why – some people seem to have an endless well of confidence.

Ok, maybe it’s not exactly confidence.

But it’s some kind of belief in their dream combined with faith in their own abilities that allows them to wade into the uncomfortable, the unknown, the unbelievable.

I’ve watched it many times from the sideline of a high school track meet or a college football game. I’ve witnessed it in Olympic medalists and in the accomplishments of endurance athletes.

And it is still one of the most baffling pieces of the sports puzzle.

Why does failure fuel some people?

And why does it derail others?

I remember one football player telling me that the NFL combine was full of guys with great resumes, impressive stats and all the physical attributes needed to play at the sport’s highest level. The only difference between those who make it and those who don’t is this elusive mix of desire and resilience that enables them to see what is possible, even in the midst of rejection, failure or evidence to the contrary.

I watched some of the U.S. Open with an eye on one player in particular – Amanda Anisimova. I didn’t watch her because her brand of tennis is exciting or because her interviews are insightful. I watched her because she suffered a humiliating defeat in the Wimbledon final in July. Anisimova lost 6-0, 6-0 to Iga Swiatek in one of the shortest matches in Wimbledon history – 57 minutes. The commentary was brutal about how the 24-year-old Anisimova choked in her first Grand Slam final.

Amanda Anisimova is the best story of resilience in 🎾

– 2019 Father passed away
– 2020 Covid
– 2021 tons of injuries
– 2023 left the sport
– fell outside of top 400
– 2025 won Doha
– 2025 July back in top 10
– 2025 Made Wimby Final

She’s 23. INSPIRATIONpic.twitter.com/RJtHznsWn6

— J.P. Hovey (@jhovey34) July 10, 2025

Anisimova said she felt “frozen.”

The pressure of center court crushed her.

At first, it seemed like just another forgettable sports moment. A lopsided match that wasn’t even interesting to analyze.

That changed when I learned that Anisimova had left the sport in May of 2023 because the grief of losing her father in 2019 had become debilitating. She was just 17 when her father suffered a heart attack and died. He was only 51.

She tried to keep training, to continue competing, to force herself to care about professional sports. But in the spring of 2023, she said her mental health required her to step away from the sport that had been the focal point of her life.

So returning to tennis and playing her way into the Wimbledon final was, on its own, an impressive feat. And, to make the comeback more impressive, she beat the No. 1 tennis player in the world – Aryna Sabalenka – to earn her spot in the finals.

She shared her struggle, and suddenly what looked like an abject failure was reframed as a massive victory. It’s a win that didn’t show up on a stat sheet. But for anyone who has lost their way, the resilience required to fight your way back to the professional ranks is Herculean.

But the most remarkable thing about Anisimova isn’t what she did at Wimbledon. It’s that she suffered that humiliating defeat, endured the questions and criticisms, and then played her way to the finals of the U.S. Open last weekend.

Even people like me who saw her appearance in the Wimbledon final as a victory were shocked. The grit and perseverance she showed in her U.S. Open wins weren’t just impressive. They were inspiring.

So I waited for the finals hoping for a Disney-type ending to what already seemed like a fairytale comeback. The match ended in another heartbreak for Anisimova. In fact, despite a much more competitive showing – 6-3, 7-6(3) – she walked to the sideline after that final point, she sat down, her face buried in a towel, and sobbed.

Not exactly anyone’s version of a happy ending.

But while it wasn’t a win, it was redemptive.

She did more than show up after humiliation, more than persevere after adversity.

Anisimova showed us that an accomplishment doesn’t have to be perfect to celebrate. She is full of joy and gratitude to be back on the court after heartbreak almost cost her a career. But she’s also full of doubt and questions and sometimes flashes of the pain that derailed her tennis game for more than a year.

Everybody wants less pain these days. Almost all of us would opt for an easier path if we could. But instead of avoiding the pain or trying to minimize the struggles, Anisimova is a lesson in embracing what is hard, what hurts and what fails.

And even as she sobbed into her towel, she is a lesson in knowing that faith in yourself doesn’t have to be unshakable to achieve your dreams. It just has to be undaunted.

Follow @adonsports