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Michael Phelps

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Submitted By sinistro
Words 1968
Pages 8
Vitor Franca
Mr. Michael Copeland
IEP Writing Skills
7 May 2013
The Eight Michael Fred Phelps was born in 1985 and grew up in Baltimore. He decided to start swimming when his two sisters made their first attempt in the US Olympic trials. At first, he was afraid of putting his head under the water, but years passed and he was no longer scared by the water. When he decided to try his first swim meet, it was the moment he made his first decision, among many others, which he would make to achieve eight gold medals years later. "At the age of eleven, his mother took him to the see Bob Bowman, his future coach. Bob laid his eyes on Phelps and predicted Michael Phelps would be an Olympic swimmer by 2000. The decision to join a swim club with Bob Bowman was an easy one. At that time he was engaged in three more sports that he had to give up in order to be a swimmer. At twelve years old he was already winning every event, until one day when he had his first loss. Phelps was extremely upset and made the bad decision of throwing his goggles down. Bob Bowman advised him about his unsportsmanlike behavior. "It's when your body is not in the best situation, your mind is not in the best situation and things are against you those are the times that really count and really matter you overcome and rise to the occasion."" (Schaller 55) Two years later he swam in the U.S. National Championship, where he placed last in the 200-meter butterfly. Very disappointed, he made the decision to practice harder with more focus on his mental ability. The following year, the little boy from Baltimore surprised the nation with his performance in the 200-meter Butterfly, when he qualified for the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sidney, Australia. "At 15, Michael became the youngest swimmer to compete for the U.S. in the Olympics in 68 years. His preparation for the 2000 Summer

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