From Baron Pierre de Coubertin’s perspective, the motivation of the individual athlete was of the utmost importance.  He believed that the benefits of sport and competition were greatest when the pursuit was pure, not for vanity or personal gain but for the glorious ideals of physical effort.  It seems the Baron was warning here against the many distractions that might draw the athlete away from peak performance.  In today’s terms, this advice might translate into the ubiquitous coaching mantra to stay centered or focused.  On the broadest scale, the Baron wanted each athlete to embrace the idealistic code of honor at the heart of the Olympic Games.   This quote comes from a speech the Baron delivered in August 1920 at Antwerp City Hall at the time of the Sixth Olympic Games.

“Once the athlete stops placing delight in his own efforts above all else, and the intoxication of physical strength and balance that result from them, once he allows himself to be dominated by considerations of vanity or self-interest, his ideals become tainted.”