All of us set goals for ourselves in life. They are short, medium and long-term projects. There are difficult goals and achieving them requires a great effort on our part. We say that we have a challenge before us when we seek to achieve success in a certain subject.
A personal challenge is a challenge that we impose on ourselves. It is a way of self-stimulation. The challenge does not apply to obtaining a minor achievement. It refers to a goal that involves effort, struggle, and tenacity. We consider that it is worth giving up many things and working hard because the prize that we are going to obtain is high, something very rewarding. In this sense the challenge is an intense desire for victory. At the moment of triumph, you have the feeling that the initial challenge has been conquered.
A challenge is a message directed within. It means that we put ourselves to the test, we accept the sacrifice and that we are convinced of our ability to achieve a satisfactory result. It is also possible to accept a challenge from another person. They propose something really difficult to us and we value the difficulty, our willpower and the advantages and disadvantages. Finally, we made a decision; whether we accept the challenge or not.
Various challenges appear in sport. Athletes face all kinds of challenges: beat a record, beat a rival or be the first in a discipline. In sports media, the idea of challenge is used to emphasize an event. It is a way of announcing it that generates expectation and illusion among the fans.
Not only in sport are there challenges, they can manifest themselves in any activity: artistic, scientific or social.
There is a very specific context to the concept of challenge: grief. Since ancient times, people have clashed to solve personal offenses, especially honor. The offended proposes a duel, a confrontation with weapons, and the offender accepts it or not. At the time of the proposal, there is a challenge. It is a statement of confrontation. The duel is a custom that has practically disappeared and, consequently, the challenge as a combat proposal appears simply in the historical films. There is a shocking image: an opponent throws a glove to the ground in defiance. In colloquial language an expression related to ancient duels is still used. It is the locution throwing the glove.
