Dein erstes Forum » paign (It could flip the beauty indust

STOCKHOLM, Sweden -- If the Tampa Bay Lightnings Swedish defenseman Victor Hedman was a man who liked to engage in the game of what-ifs, hed have a lot of material to work with.Theres the Stanley Cup finals defeat to the Chicago Blackhawks in 2015. Then theres last Mays conference finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins, in which the Lightning held a 3-2 series lead before losing two straight. And before all that, in 2014, he was the most high-profile snub of the Swedish Olympic team in Sochi, the one that lost the final to Canada.But hes not that kind of guy.Instead, hes trying to use the disappointments as fuel for future success.The first weeks after the loss were tough and I was still mad, but then, once I got back to offseason training, it was easier to start looking ahead again, he told ESPN.com recently in Swedish. Now those losses are whats driving me, but its a long [wait]. Also, its a tough league, and all teams are good and getting better, so we cant get ahead of things too much, either.If it were an episode in ESPNs 30-for-30 series, the chance for redemption would come quickly for Hedman and the Lightning. But in real life, a 10-month wait for the next opportunity is long, and if the focus is 10 months away, the chance might never come, Hedman said.Today, there are 30 teams in the NHL fighting for the playoff spots, and only 16 make it there. Our first goal has always been, and is now, to make the playoffs, he said. You cant get ahead of things, but instead, our focus has to be on game No. 1, and then take it from there, and try to form good habits that carry us deep.The Lightning still have their Stanley Cup finals core group intact, thanks to team captain Steven Stamkos decision to re-sign with the team. Hedman sees that as an additional strength for the team.We have good chemistry in the group, and we have a system that we like, he said, but Im sure the fact that weve been through a lot together is a driving force for us all and pushes us to get better.With the Lightning going deep in the playoffs, Hedman hasnt been able to play for Sweden at the world championships the past two years, and since then-coach Par Marts famously left him off the Olympic roster in 2014, its been four years since Hedman has worn his countrys three-crown jersey in an important tournament. That will all change when he suits up for Sweden in the World Cup of Hockey, which begins Sept. 17 in Toronto.Im excited about [playing for Sweden in the World Cup] because it has been a while, even if the fact that its been for the right reasons -- that weve gone deep in the playoffs, he said.Swedens head coach for the World Cup, Rikard Gronborg, spent a decade in the U.S. college system before joining the Swedish federation 10 years ago. The players, without exception, like his style, which they consider more North American than Swedish.He knows the American terminology and what its like to play in the smaller rink, and he understands how big this event is in Canada, said Hedman. He also knows a lot of [opposing] players and their styles.Team Sweden held a preparation meeting in early August, during which the players socialized a bit and listened to their new coachs ideas and thoughts. And shared their ideas with the coach.The coach says how he wants us to play, but he certainly listens to our suggestions, said Hedman. After all, he can give us templates, but we have to execute them on the ice.With players coming from different NHL teams, and a head coach that the players call Americanized, will there even be a Swedish style?Youll see, Hedman said with a grin.We have a lot of talent in all positions. We have a great defense, forwards that are world class, and we have one of the best goalies in the world. Well be creative, use our defense in the offense. Then again, all teams want to play a possession game, and all teams play a similar style, with their own nuances. We just have to do it better than the other teams.But there is one very Swedish thing the Tre Kronor players do when they get together. They do fika, which is Swedish for sitting down with a cup of coffee, talking about this and that, and just taking it easy for a while.We do have a lot of fika, he said. 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Jen Bricker was born without legs due to a genetic defect and abandoned at birth by her biological parents. She was taken in by her adoptive parents and proceeded to have a relatively normal childhood. And like many young girls of the 1990s, she grew up loving gymnastics and idolizing Dominique Moceanu.Bricker, 28, watched her idol win gold with the Magnificent Seven during the 1996 Olympics. She was proud that Moceanu also had Romanian-American heritage and a small stature. Despite her physical limitations, Bricker went on to build her own successful gymnastics career.Then, in 2003, Bricker discovered that her hero was actually her biological sister.Bricker spent four years attempting to meet Moceanu, and they kept their story quiet for four more years. With their other sister, Christina, they went public with their shocking discovery in 2012.While that was -- and remains -- a huge part of Brickers life and identity, its not all she is. Bricker hopes to share her full story in her new book, Everything is Possible: Finding the Faith & Courage to Follow Your Dreams, co-written with Sheryl Berk and released this week.Up until this point, publicly and in the media, people have only known my story or me as an aerialist or as a tumbler, thats really all people know about me, Bricker said by phone from her Los Angeles home. So whats exciting is this book is my heart; its me. Thats never really been shown before, and not even a little bit. Thats what Im really excited about -- to show people my heart, and not just my story.***Raised in Illinois alongside three older brothers by two loving parents, Bricker grew up with the belief that everything was possible. Even though she did not have legs, her family encouraged her to try gymnastics when she expressed interest as a young girl captivated by Moceanu. She almost immediately showed promise in the sport and worked her way through the youth ranks.Because of her impressive athleticism and positive attitude, Bricker began achieving local, national and even global fame, appearing on the Maury Show as a fifth-grader and on a German television program a year later. At the time, she knew she was destined to help inspire others. Even at a young age, she knew a book was in her future.Ive known since I was really young that I would someday write a book, although I thought it was something I would do when I was old and had gray hair, she said. But I knew two years ago, this was the right time for the book. The time is now. And this is exactly what Im supposed to be doing right now.The local tumbling gym became a second home for Bricker as a child, and she competed against able-bodied gymnasts around the area. She refused to have any special treatment and wanted to be judged the same as her peers. While she said she occasionally got stares from opponents and their parents, she quickly proved she was just as good, if not better, than her competition. Her talent and hard work earned her a fourth-place finish at the AAU Junior Olympics in power tumbling as an 11-year-old and a state title as a high school student, among many other titles and awards.After graduating from high school, Bricker was attending a local community college when she saw a sign on campus for the college program at Walt Disney World. She instantly jumped at the chance and was accepted. She moved to Orlando to start her job in park operations. She loved the experience and living independently for the first time in her life. She never doubted her ability to succeed in whatever she chose to do, in large part because of her parents and the confidence they instilled in her.They allowed me to be who Im meant to be, Bricker said. That may seem like a simple thing, but I can see how that would be very difficult. They allowed me to be who I am and who Im meant to be, and not who they wanted me to be. They allowed me to have my own mind, so I would be confident in making my own decisions, and that carried over 100 percent into being an adultt and making big decisions.dddddddddddd.After becoming obsessed with The Lion King show at Disneys Animal Kingdom, Bricker met performer Nate Crawford through a friend. He was instantly intrigued by the idea of developing a show for the two of them and encouraged Bricker to try aerial acrobatics and trampoline. Despite not having tumbled in a few years, Bricker quickly returned to her peak athletic form and learned to love her new disciplines. The duo choreographed an act on the trampoline and had their first performance at the Amway Center in Orlando during the 2008 Mascot Games.Shortly after, the two had to put the show on hiatus as Crawford was cast on Britney Spears Circus tour. It wasnt long before the then-22-year-old Bricker impressed Spears shows producers and they added her to the North American and Australian stints. Appearing in 40 shows, Bricker called it an amazing and crazy time of her life. She also considers it her big break and credits it for opening many doors in the industry that had previously been closed.While her professional life was thriving, she was hiding a big secret in her personal life. Brickers parents showed her the adoption documentation when she was 16, revealing the astounding discovery about Moceanu.It was an absolutely mind-blowing moment, she said. I thought, How can this be real? It was crazy. But then I thought it kind of made sense. We do look alike, we are both Romanian, there are all these things we have in common.After exhaustively searching for Moceanu and figuring out how to reach her, Bricker finally tracked her down in 2007 and wrote her a heartfelt letter. A few weeks later, she received flowers and a personalized Christmas card in return. While it would take several months for the three sisters to meet, they corresponded in the interim and finally got together in May 2008.Their relationship remains a work in progress as they continue to make up for lost time. The three all live in different states, and Dominique and Christina both are married with young children, so its not always easy to get together. They try whenever the opportunity arises.Despite the physical and emotional distances between the sisters, their similarities are unmistakable. When Brickers brothers met her new sisters, they were astonished by the likeness.My brothers were totally tripping out, she said. They were just like Wait, you sound like Jen, and you look like Jen, and you move your hands like Jen! They were just freaking out, but then they just realized they had two more sisters to give a hard time to.Once the sisters revealed their story, Bricker was relieved they no longer had to keep it a secret -- and she was happy she could finally post a picture of herself with her siblings on Facebook.It was so tough to finally have met them and have had such a celebratory moment and not being able to share it with so many people in my life, Bricker said.Now, Bricker plans to further leave her mark on the world. She wants to one day land a sportswear or makeup ad campaign (It could flip the beauty industry upside down!) and eventually get married and have a family -- with both biological and adopted children.In the meantime, she continues to build her relationship with her sisters, and might even begin work on another book soon. Ultimately, she just wants to inspire others with her powerful story of perseverance, positivity and cant-stop-me attitude. She hopes her message will help anyone, regardless of physical limitations or otherwise.Everyone has gifts and talents and abilities, there is equal power in that, she said. One is not more important than the other. With that equal significance, what someone brings to the table is equal and has equal power to change someones life.Their story may look different than my story, but it might have the same power to change someones life out there. ' ' '