Eve Muirhead: Leadership lessons from a curling Olympic gold medallist
In an exclusive interview with Olympics.com, the Beijing 2022 Olympic champion reveals the key learnings from her career that she will impart as Great Britain’s Chef de Mission for the Winter Youth Olympic Games Gangwon 2024.
Curling
It makes sense that Eve Muirhead was asked to be Great Britain’s Chef de Mission for the Winter Youth Olympic Games Gangwon 2024.
For starters, the Scotswoman has been the skip of her curling teams for as long as she can remember and has plenty of leadership experience.
Her CV also reads four-time junior world champion, so she understands what it is like to compete on the big stage at a young age.
And an Olympic bronze medal at Sochi 2014 followed by gold at Beijing 2022 demonstrate Muirhead’s resilience and excellence in equal measure.
She will be calling upon all of this experience when leading Team GB at Gangwon 2024 in the Republic of Korea from 19 January to 1 February next year.
“I've been a leader the majority of my career. In terms of what I can share in my role, support is number one, how to perform under pressure and how to lead the team back from failure,” Muirhead told Olympics.com.
“I can assure all athletes that they’re not going to win all the time and I lost a lot more games than I won. So it's all about how you come back from it.
“I think the main two skills I will bring are performing under pressure and making quick decisions because I have always done it. Sometimes that decision will come down to myself and you've got to make that decision whether it's the right or wrong decision.
“I'm the kind of person that gives it my all and I don't do anything just half-hearted.”
Eve Muirhead: "If you give support, you're going to receive support back"
For some elite athletes, the most important aspect of performance is to focus only on themselves.
Muirhead has a different take on this, having learnt from a young age to harness the energy of those around her including her immediate teammates and wider supporters.
"I think what's important for these athletes to understand is that while they're there as individuals performing in their sport, they are also part of a wider team,” she said.
“They need to have pride to have Team GB on their back because it is a great honour and it's something that they’ll cherish for the rest of their life, and hopefully provides a step to future Olympic Games.
“When I first went to the Olympic Games, I wasn't used to being at an event where down the road there's speed skating and figure skating and skiing up in the mountains. That multi-sport environment is something the athletes can use to their advantage in terms of cheering on their fellow teammates and supporting each other.
"If you give support, you're going to receive some support back as well."
Since retiring from curling in August 2022, Muirhead has worked in commentary and other media roles.
It was only since going ‘behind the scenes’ that she realised how much work went into staging a sports event.
As Chef de Mission, for example, the former curling star needs to ensure that her athletes stay connected and supported despite being based across two different Olympic villages at Gangwon 2024, with one athlete potentially being the only Team GB member in their village.
“When you're on the other side of the fence, you realise how much goes into making events happen. As an athlete, you take it for granted and I did,” she said.
“But that's how you want it and that's how I want it to run for Gangwon 2024. I want those guys to not know anything that's happening behind the scenes. I want them to go there and have a fun and friendly experience.”
From athlete to administrator for Gangwon 2024
Muirhead's transition from athlete to commentator and administrator has taken some getting used to.
Where structure and predictability once existed, she now has to plan her day around unforeseen tasks.
“I think routines have probably been the hardest thing. When you're an athlete, you're stuck in a routine and I got very comfy with that,” she said.
“Now that I’m retired I still keep fit and I make sure I give myself time for that, but then it's realising that things can happen differently on a day to day basis.
“You could be on calls, and just need to fit things into your diary when you can and be quite open to change as well, which isn’t something that I've been used to in the past.”
But the competitive flame still burns bright within this Olympic champion.
While many retired athletes may choose to spend more time relaxing and letting their body rest, Muirhead, who is also a talented golfer, decided to throw herself into an entirely new type of fitness challenge.
“I'm doing the London Marathon because when I retired, I needed a goal to move forward to. I needed something to build towards because it's something that's always been a driver for me.
“A lot of people think I'm a bit crazy and I'll admittedly be glad when it's over the 24th of April!”