By Alec Hogg
Being precocious is a double edged sword. Many who achieve greatness early, fail to fulfil their potential. Have a look through the list of Wimbledon’s Junior Champions and you’ll see what I’m getting at. For every Roger Federer (winner in 1998) there are a dozen like South African Wesley Whitehouse (winner in 1997) who never got into Tennis’s Top 200.
There may well be a clear advantage to peaking later in life. Best current example is French footballing genius Dimitri Payet, scorer of the wonder goal that gave the host nation victory over Romania at Euro 2016. Until a couple years ago, 29 year old Payet was one of many talented players stuck in the middle ground. Now all of France is calling the man from Reunion “un don du ciel” – a gift from heaven.
Payet always possessed the talent. All he needed was the right encouragement, management and environment. Which is something he shares with virtually everyone on earth So here’s to the late maturers. Those who take time to bloom perhaps to remind the rest of us it is never too late to break through. That while there’s life, there’s always hope.
