Two historic sporting events brought the power of the mind to the world's attention. Roger Bannister broke the 4-minute mile in 1954, showing that limits exist only in the mind. Vasily Alexeev lifted over 500 pounds in 1970, shattering beliefs about human physiology. Creative visualization and mental training can significantly improve an athlete's performance, as proven by Soviet studies showing groups with more mental training performed best. Top athletes devote significant time to mental conditioning including visualization.