Photo Credit : Instagram; @panipak2540
During times of economic downturn and widespread health crises, it’s natural for many to feel discouraged, exhausted, or even hopeless. Yet last week, there was a bright spot that brought joy to people across Thailand: the Olympic gold medal in women’s taekwondo won by Tennis Panipak Wongpattanakit.
Millions of Thais joined in celebrating “Nong Tennis,” our latest Olympic gold medal hero, whose victory in the last 7 seconds of the match brought us all smiles. Beyond the congratulatory posts and messages, reading articles about her success reveals one key truth:
“Her achievements were not a matter of luck or coincidence.”
To become an Olympic gold medalist, two-time world champion, World Taekwondo Grand Slam winner, Asian Games gold medalist, Asian champion, and one of the top female taekwondo athletes in the world, she had to endure intense training and sacrifice comfort and personal pleasures. There is no doubt she is a Great Player.
Another Great Player and long-time inspiration for me is Cristiano Ronaldo. I often admire him for being the first to arrive and the last to leave training. Ronaldo’s discipline, relentless practice, and dedication—sacrificing the leisure and desires of his peers—stemmed from his long-term goal of becoming the greatest footballer in the world.
Both Ronaldo and Tennis have experienced defeats.
In the 2016 Rio Olympics, many expected Tennis to win gold due to her hot form, but she fell in the quarterfinals, losing to a South Korean athlete in the final four seconds. She later admitted she trained “madly” to avoid being outdone again. Five years later, she held the Olympic gold medal she dreamed of. Ronaldo, too, had setbacks but eventually won every club championship and was recognized as one of the world’s football legends.
From these examples, we can identify three traits common to Great Players:
Focus - Have clear goals, commitment, and do what you are best at. If Tennis had played football instead of taekwondo, there would be no Olympic gold. If Ronaldo spent his training hours on golf or cycling instead of football, he wouldn’t have reached such heights.
Passion - True passion leaves no room for “enough.” The more you love what you do, the higher your pain threshold for enduring the challenges. Without passion, it’s easy to give up. With passion, you persevere despite obstacles.
Purpose beyond Profit - Those who act only for money will not last. True motivation comes from creating a legacy, inspiring others, and building something greater than yourself. This gives the strength to overcome challenges.
Looking at the two of them, I couldn’t help but reflect on my own journey. I remember being rejected by every university in Thailand. I sought education in the UK, aspiring to study at world-class institutions like Oxford or Cambridge. I wasn’t academically strong and had to change myself to pursue a bigger goal. During my undergraduate years, I spent 10–12 hours daily in the library, pushing myself despite the pain, so I wouldn’t regret wasted opportunities. Eventually, I earned a place in Oxford for my master’s degree.
You can see that just by admiring one football player, I gained inspiration, a role model, and an example of good character from him. This has constantly pushed me to keep improving myself, becoming better and better because I had a clear goal and trained myself every single day. I kept going, kept my eyes on the bigger picture, dared to challenge, to think differently, to act differently, and to work harder than others—pushing myself beyond the limits of pain. When the day came that I decided to start a Bitcoin exchange company, I thought back to the very first day I built it all alone on the mezzanine floor of my parents’ clothing shop in Pratunam. Back when no one in this country understood Bitcoin, when even my own parents disagreed and many times told me to stop.
From someone who was summoned by the AMLO, the SEC, and the Bank of Thailand for questioning, and even had the Revenue Department visit my office—if I hadn’t believed in Bitcoin, if I hadn’t believed in Blockchain, if I hadn’t believed that this would change the world and create new opportunities for many people, I would have given up. And there wouldn’t be Bitkub as it is today.
Throughout the 8–9 years I’ve been in this industry, I’ve built my conviction through knowledge, constant research, and passion. Even though my team and I have faced countless problems and crises, our strong determination has always been to make Bitkub a bridge that helps Thai people cross from the old world into the new digital era. A bridge that creates opportunities not only for investing in digital assets but also for leveraging blockchain technology such as NFTs and DeFi, as well as opportunities to learn new knowledge and skill sets for the future. Until today, I have never stopped developing. I want Bitkub to become a bigger and bigger bridge — to grow into a unicorn company that can inspire other Thai startups and prove that Thais can do it too. If I hadn’t had this vision, I wouldn’t have gone out to speak on more than 1,000 stages. From someone who was once too shy to even present in front of 20 classmates, I’ve grown to the point where I can confidently speak to thousands without fear.
It’s normal that life comes with obstacles, but if we truly want something and it really matters, it will drive us to do whatever it takes to make it happen.
From the success of our Olympic heroes, beyond the joy and celebration, I want everyone to understand the true source of that success—so that it can inspire you, give you encouragement, and show you ways to keep moving forward with strength. I’d like to be one more source of encouragement for everyone in these times. I also hope that I, too, can achieve success by leading Bitkub to become another unicorn—creating opportunities and inspiration for millions of Thai people.
Let’s keep fighting together—don’t give up!
Topp Jirayut Srupsrisopa
Founder & CEO Bitkub Capital Group Holdings Co., Ltd.
