“Float Like a Butterfly…”

Okay, after much thought, I have a decision. I will be a competitor and represent my country at the Olympic Games in Paris in July and August 2024. I turn the pages of my diary and put my pen through the days that I will not be available for anything else. Then I add a few days at the end - I love Paris! 

I am the sixteenth Earl of Denver, a direct descendant of Lord Peter Wimsey. I am number 32 in line for the throne. Don’t laugh - anything can happen and propel me to the front. A plague, for instance. Say it originated in some far-off country and spreads around the world. 31 titled candidates could disappear in a puff of smoke. I will be 20 in three years' time, and besides school I spend most of my time in the grounds of Denver Castle. All 80 acres.

I am an avid sportsman and athlete. I am the school sprint and long-distance running champion, I play rugby and cricket in the first teams and my report card is stunning. So if I want to take part in the Olympic Games, what should I enter for? In which event can I excel? Which one can I win? I cannot come home without at least one gold medal!

I put the question to the sports master at school, Tom Jameson. He thought for a moment and said, “Why not concentrate on the long jump? You’ve never tried it, you know. I think you may be able to break a few records.” I nodded. It will be a change from running.

Next morning I strolled over to the head groundsman's office on the estate. “Simpson, can you please prepare a long jump pitch somewhere on the grounds. You can find the specifications on the internet. I’d like it as soon as possible, please. Thank you, Simpson.”

He looked at me askance and said, “Long jump, eh? That will be quite a challenge, My Lord. I have no doubt you will succeed.”

“Thank you, Simpson.”

Simpson called me early on Friday morning. “The Long Jump pitch is ready, Sir. I wish you luck in your endeavors, Sir.”

The pitch looked as though it had been stolen from its site at the Rio Olympics. Perfect! Now to take a few jumps and check my distances. Then I will be able to see where I am in relation to the records. The long jump is a popular track and field event. It has been a major event in the Olympic Games from the very first one. The current record is 8.95 meters or 29.4 feet.

I paced back to a starting point for the run-up, stood for a second and then came sprinting down the runway as fast as I could before launching myself into the jump. 26 feet. Almost 3 feet less than the world record. I will not put my name forward as a candidate for the Olympic Games unless I can beat the world record and bring glory to my country. I need to beat 29 foot 6 inches.  My second jump was shorter than the first and my third even a few inches shorter. I continued these jumps without making any significant improvement.

A year later, after I had spent long hours and expended great amounts of energy in jumps that were close but always below the target, I approached Tom Jameson, the sports master at school. “Mr. Jameson, would you be kind enough to come over to my place and watch me jump?” I asked. “I need to make some improvements to my performance.”

“I’d be delighted, Peter,” he said.

He arrived later and we made our way to the pit, which was almost half a mile from the house, behind the stables and close to the tennis courts and the swimming pool.

“Alright, young fellow, let me see you in action!”

I made a jump of about 28 feet. He clapped and cried excellent! Do another!”

I did. This time four inches better. “Good!” he said. And then, “how can I help you?”

“I want to reach 30 feet,” I said.

“That’s more than the world record,” he gasped in surprise.

“That’s what I’m aiming to break!”

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Peter. I have some heavy thinking to do about what I’ve seen.”

He arrived next day with a great smile on his face. “Remember the great boxer, Muhammad Ali?” he asked.

I nodded. “He was a long jumper?”

“No. He was a homespun philosopher and he used his quips to amuse his fans and irritate his opponents. One of the most famous was “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.”

“And?”

“That’s what I want you to do. Float like a butterfly from the moment you leave the ground on your jump. Visualize yourself floating. And keep on floating. Until you cannot defy gravity any longer.”

I looked at him in amazement. “You really think that’ll work?”

“Think of yourself as a butterfly, not as a jumper. It’s worth a try…”

“Sure it’s worth trying. Just don’t tell people that I think I’m a butterfly. It doesn’t sound so good.”  

“Okay. Now let me see you in action.”

Off I went to the end of the runway. I stopped there and paused for a minute. Then I commenced my run, gathering speed as I raced along. I hit the take-off board and lifted myself into the air.

And I hung there, feeling as light as a feather, enjoying the rush of air past my ears and through my hair, opening and closing my eyes as the ground beneath me swept past.

The raked earth of the landing pit rose to meet me. I put my legs and arms out in front of me to help me fall forward. And then I was in the loose sand of the pit. I looked at the measuring tape I had laid down so I could see the results of every jump. I needn’t have bothered.  

Tom called out, “That’s the first time I’ve actually seen someone break a world record! That jump was 30 feet!”

“Hey, Tom, your Butterfly theory works like a charm! I floated!”

“I saw that, Peter. I reckon you can probably improve on that.”

“I’ll keep working on it. Thanks for your help, Tom. Watch out for me at the Paris Olympics!”

“I will indeed!”

And so will we all!