Mallory Weggemann - Limitless

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Sharing her journey with authenticity and vulnerability, Mallory doesnt just bring us into her heartshe empowers us to reflect on our own journey, finding the power that exists when we honor our truth. At its core, Limitless is a reminder to all of us of the strength of the human spirit to overcome circumstance.

FRANK MARSHALL, FIVE-TIME ACADEMY AWARDNOMINATED FILMMAKER AND MEMBER OF THE US OLYMPIC & PARALYMPIC HALL OF FAME

Mallory is a hero and an inspiration in every sense of the word. Her story is written with such truth and authenticity, it will have you crying, laughing, and learning all at the same time. In these pages, she shares the true power of showing all those around you, including yourself, grace and forgiveness. Mallorys story, heart, passion, and faith will leave you feeling like you, too, can change the world.

MISSY FRANKLIN JOHNSON, FIVE-TIME OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST AND AUTHOR OF RELENTLESS SPIRIT

Limitless teaches us about the grit and tenacity it takes to keep coming back and harnessing the inner power to realize our own limitless potential.

BILLIE JEAN KING, FOUNDER, BILLIE JEAN KING LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE

Its said, the measure of a person is not whether they fall but how they get back up and continue forward. In Limitless, Mallory shares her story of how she refused to allow circumstance to define her, but rather utilized it to redefine limitations and pave her own path forward. I have been fortunate to hear Mallory speak to many groups within Delta, and I am thrilled many more people will come to know her inspirational story. Now, more than ever, we need Mallorys message of hope and determination in overcoming adversity. Limitless will not only inspire you but empower you to find your own inherent strength within.

ED BASTIAN, CEO, DELTA AIR LINES

Mallory has embodied the true sense of overcoming any obstacle that presents itself. Whether physical or mental, Limitless teaches us all that choosing hope over fear will conquer anything. Such a great reminder for anyone at any age... it is our responses not our circumstances that ultimately define us in the end. This universal message is a must-read for the world today.

CHRISTINE FARRELL, CEO, WASHINGTON SPEAKERS BUREAU

Limitless is a beautiful and powerful journey of the human spirit that teaches us good will always overcome and our limits in life should only come from within ourselves.

KYLE CARPENTER, USMC MEDAL OF HONOR RECIPIENT AND NATIONAL BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF YOU ARE WORTH IT

Limitless

2021 Mallory Weggemann

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ISBN: 978-1-4002-2347-3 (ePub)

ISBN: 978-1-4002-2348-0 (audiobook)

Epub Edition December 2020 9781400223473

Library of Congress Control Number: 2020950321

ISBN: 978-1-4002-2346-6 (HC)

Printed in the United States of America

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For my parentswho have guided me, giving me the faith to

know that good overcomes and the courage to believe that I can

make a difference. Your strength to let go twice as parents is

what led me forward and allowed me to pave my own path.

To my husband, Jayyour love is more than I could have

ever dreamed imaginable. You are my anchor and the light

that guides me home, showing me that love perseveres all.

And to you, readerwherever you find yourself in your own

journey, may you know that you are worthy of all things splendid.

As I positioned myself on the starting block, mentally prepping for my first race of the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships, I was suddenly hit with the realization that it had been nine years since I competed at a world championships, seven years since I won a major international medal, and three years since I last raced internationally. Id become a thirteen-time world champion and Paralympic medalist less than four years after my paralysis at age eighteen and later endured a second injury that nearly cost me my career. As I waited for the horn to sound, I felt the weight of a journey that included the darkest season of my life, but I also felt myself emergingout of all those years of grief, struggle, and doubtinto the light I saw ahead. Youve got this, I thought, settling into my starting position. Whatever happens, youve got this. The horn blared, and I pushed myself off the starting block with all my might.

A mere 34.76 seconds later, my fingers touched the wall and my head rose above the waters surface. The London Aquatics Centre was filled with cheers and splashes as the final swimmers pushed through their last strokes. Lifting my goggles, I glanced to the scoreboard where it flashed for a moment before the final rankings appeared on the screen. There it was: M. Weggemann, 1. First place.

Immediately, I looked to the stands to find my team standing in their predictable order: my coach pacing on the observation deck above, my family seated below with my dad on one end, my husband on the other, and my mom in between them. We locked eyes, and my mom flashed the same thumbs-up she has given me both before and after every race of my career. I knew that thumbs-up meant I love you, but it also meant something else, an unofficial Weggemann family motto that had gotten us through even the most trying times: good overcomes. I grinned and waved, and they stopped hugging everyone within reach just long enough to wave back.

Those little rituals comfort me. They are things I can count on even if everything else goes haywire. I know my family is there, as they always areas they always have been. They were there for my first meets back after I was paralyzed; they were there for the world records and the 2012 London Paralympics; they were there for the awful years after my arm injury, when I contemplated retirement. And they were there that night, as I claimed my fourteenth world championship title. A Team USA rep wrapped the American flag around me, and I proudly raised it above my head. Despite the cheering that reverberated in the swimming complex, I could only hear two words as the gold medal was slipped around my neck a few minutes later: