Athletes all around the globe who have the great qualities that are essential to be a captain do this in a way that reflects themselves and the organization that they are a part of by showing their tremendous leadership skills on and off of the playing field. This person leads by example and lets others follow him or her. Jason Varitek, Tom Brady, and Derek Jeter all share these qualities and show what it takes to be a great captain in sports.

Jason Varitek was the leader and captain of the Boston Red Sox that won their first two World Series championships in 2004 and 2007 for the first time in 86 years. Not only was he a good hitting catcher, but he was known for his defensive abilities and as the captain of the Red Sox. All of the pitchers respected him a lot and knew that behind the plate, he was one of the best leaders in the game. Clay Buchholz said that during the game against Baltimore in September of 2007 when he threw a no-hitter in his second game in the MLB “The game started speeding up on me a couple of times and I remember him calling timeout, running out there, telling me to take a couple of deep breaths, throw a pitch down and away to get a ground ball and get out of an inning.” He caught four no-hitters in his career. He was a great leader in the clubhouse, on the field, and outside of the game.

Next, Tom Brady has led his team to six Super Bowls in the last 15 years, including four championships. Two things that set him apart as a leader were his persistence and his refusal to quit, even when times were tough. He has always had a chip on his shoulder, being the sixth quarterback taken in the 2001 NFL Draft, and 199th pick overall. Brady sets his game to a standard that is so incredibly high, that he does the same for each and every member of the team, which allows the team to go as far as it can because their leader is pushing each and every member on the team to strive to be Super Bowl Champions year in and year out. He pushes his teammates to strive for greatness and to have the will to keep pushing no matter the scenario, the score or anything else in their path. For example, this year the investigation of “Deflategate” could have distracted the Patriots from preparing for the Super Bowl against Seattle. However, Tom Brady lead his team to success by using this alleged violation as fuel to prove to everyone that they did not cheat,  that the New England Patriots were the best team in the NFL, and they deserved to be Super Bowl Champions.

Finally, Derek Jeter had a long storied baseball career that included three thousand four-hundred fifty hits, thirteen All Star appearances, and five World Series rings. However, he will always be remembered for the leadership skills that he displayed in every aspect of his life to lead the Yankees to the fantastic success that they have had in the last 20 years. Tino Martinez said it best during the 1996 Playoffs, during Jeter’s rookie year. Tino said “His maturity as a rookie was that of a veteran; he was a leader at that time without saying everything, and always gave 100 percent.” Jeter led by example, making fantastic plays that no one else would have even imagined, like The Flip Play against the Oakland Athletics in 2003 to win a playoff game and eventually the series. Diving into the stands multiple times to catch pop-ups, most famously against the Boston Red Sox was also a mark of his great hustle and desire to be great. He was a true model of consistency, courage, and effort. Jeter was not only a great player, but a true role model everywhere throughout the world. I truly resect him despite being a huge Red Sox fan because of the way he went to work every single day trying to get better.

These three athletes were all great role models in their community and great leaders on the field and in the clubhouse. Not only do they lead in the clubhouse, they all do great charitable work in the community such as donating to charities and visiting local hospitals and cancer patients that show that they are great people and great role models for young children to aspire to be like. Despite all of the great things that Jason Varitek, Tom Brady, and Derek Jeter have done on the field, they will be remembered for their leadership beyond anything else.