Emmanuel Stockbroekx
I'm an author and elite hockey player, with a fascination for performance, mindset, personal development, recovery and life beyond sport.
Why I’m writing this book
The story begins in a period marked by injury, heartbreak, uncertainty about my sporting future, family tensions and real physical and emotional strain. I had set out to become an exceptionally tough hockey player — and discovered that sporting excellence alone does not answer the question of how to live well.
Why 1 · The personal purpose
“I wanted to become an exceptional hockey player. Someone who could work harder, go further and endure more than others.
But when injuries, disappointments and personal setbacks turned my life upside down, I discovered I had to answer a far more important question.
Not only: how do I become a better player? But also: how do I become a better person?
How do I stay ambitious without becoming bitter? How do I stay strong without denying my vulnerability? And how do I chase my biggest dreams without losing my health, relationships or identity along the way?”
Why 2 · The purpose for the reader
“This book is written for that young player with a big dream. Who wants to give everything to become the best, but still has to discover what pursuing excellence really asks.
I want to show him what helped me, but also which mistakes I made and what price I sometimes paid.
How do you develop discipline without breaking yourself? How do you deal with setbacks without losing your self-worth? How do you learn to ask for help, recover, protect relationships and stay true to who you want to be?
The lessons were born in elite sport, but they are meant for anyone with an extraordinary ambition.”
Proposed editorial website copy, not verified verbatim quotations. The book shows how to pursue excellence — and how not to — but it is not a promise that you can avoid every mistake or reach any particular outcome.
“You don’t become unbreakable by becoming untouchable. You become unbreakable by learning how to rebuild without losing yourself.”
This is not a finished victory story. The learning, questioning and developing are still going on — and they lead, step by step, toward the Center of Excellence and a broader understanding of sustainable excellence.
Build your Center of ExcellenceI didn't build a theory first and then find a story. I experienced something, struggled with it, thought about it, and tried to understand what it taught me.
Freely translated from The Magical Mindset
Book I
The pursuit of excellence in elite sport: ambition, personal responsibility, learning, team culture, and long-term commitment.
As a boy · Event
I watched the Olympic Games and wondered why Belgium didn't have a successful team on that stage. The vision existed long before there was any evidence.
School · Event
Potential did not automatically become results. Later, I left the traditional school path and had to organize more of my work myself — with fewer places to hide.
For Rio · Event
A red card, weeks of emotion, tears during media training and a teammate who understood how much I cared. After a disappointment I started making smoothies for my teammates.
Rio · Event
An Olympic silver medal.
2017 · Event
After a breakdown, I thought about quitting and no longer wanted to pick up my hockey stick. I left a national-team training camp and sought professional help.
2018 · Event
On 3 December, I was injured against India at the World Cup; my tournament was over.
Afterwards · Interpretation
After the breakdown — the stick I no longer wanted to pick up — I started professional guidance and was also coached while writing The Magical Mindset. It brought back the energy to continue, by returning to the little boy in myself who dreamed of a strong team at the highest levels. When the injury came, I went home and, in the studio surrounded by big screens, family and friends, watched Belgium become world champions for the first time.
Book II
In later conversations, I distinguish three Olympic cycles: discovery and building, profound doubt and adversity, and approaching familiar challenges with greater awareness.
IEvent
My sporting ambition takes shape; I discover elite sport and build a strong performance identity.
Interpretation
What gave me drive was more my father's setbacks: the wish to help him. But my own setbacks played a part too — I wanted to make something of myself. Like David Goggins, I wanted to become someone who could look at himself with satisfaction and who didn't give up every time difficulties, setbacks and challenges came. It was about the mind.
IIEvent
Questions about the future, injuries, a serious head injury, leaving the national team, and an Olympic title won by my teammates without me. In June 2024, I was not selected for the Olympic squad.
Interpretation
I had already been working with the idea of ‘The Unbreakable Player’ — and was confronted with the painful realization that I was, in fact, vulnerable. What happens when you define yourself primarily through performance?
IIIInterpretation
Return to meaning. The Center of Excellence is my new North Star: a broader view of excellence in which health, recovery, structure, relationships, learning and fair feedforward come together.
Event
Identity became a theme in 2025: in coaching, my studies, the family business and conversations about the future after hockey. The focus moved to the new 100% — what it really involves, and consciously shaping and experiencing life differently.
Ongoing ambition
I take the 1% chance as my reason to find ways to fulfil my potential: to work on my weaknesses, keep humanity central and keep improving myself in every area. A better man. A good, humble man.
Speaking
Information about talks and sessions will be added soon. Interested? Feel free to get in touch.
ContactOrigin of the concept
The Unbreakable Mindset originated under the working title The Unbreakable Player, before the serious head injury.
It began in conversations with Carl Van de Velde after Spain, and deepened over years of coaching with Stephen.
The Coaching Side