Brad Herzog - Powerful Stories of Perseverance in Sports

As shown by the wonderful stories in Count on Me: Sports, athletics can not only reveal character, but also inspire it.

Shannon Miller, two-time Olympic gold medalist in gymnastics

The true tales in Brad Herzogs books show how the games we play can teach seriously important life lessons.

Jake Delhomme, former Super Bowl quarterback for the Carolina Panthers

Copyright 2014 by Brad Herzog

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. Unless otherwise noted, no part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher, except for brief quotations or critical reviews. For more information, go to www.freespirit.com/company/permissions.cfm.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Herzog, Brad.

Powerful stories of perseverance in sports / Brad Herzog.

pages cm (Count on me: sports)

ISBN 978-1-57542-456-9 (paperback) ISBN 1-57542-456-8 1. AthletesConduct of lifeJuvenile literature. 2. AthletesBiographyJuvenile literature. 3. SportsmanshipJuvenile literature. 4. CharacterJuvenile literature. I. Title.

GV697.A1H3966 2014

796.0922dc23

eBook ISBN: 978-1-57542-599-3

Free Spirit Publishing does not have control over or assume responsibility for author or third-party websites and their content.

Reading Level Grade 5; Interest Level Ages 813;
Fountas & Pinnell Guided Reading Level V

Edited by Alison Behnke
Cover and interior design by Michelle Lee Lagerroos

Cover photo credits: background Bruxov|Dreamstime.com;
clockwise from top left: AP Photo/Scott A. Miller; Cal Sports Media via AP Images; AP Photo/Kevin Larkin; AP Photo/Damen Jackson via Triple Play New Media; Press Association via AP Images; AP Photo/Greg Wahl-Stephens. For interior photo credits, see .

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DEDICATION

For Judy Mozersky, who continues to persevere and inspire.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Thank you to Judy Galbraith, Margie Lisovskis, and the rest of the crew at Free Spirit Publishing for having the courage to pursue a series of books celebrating stories of character in sports. I found Alison Behnke to be both insightful and inclusive as an editor, an authors dream combination, and Michelle Lee Lagerroos put in overtime making sure the designs were just right. Finally, I am grateful to Aimee Jackson for bringing me to Free Spirit in the first place and for her unwavering support and friendship.

When life throws a pitcher a curveball, he tosses a no-hitter.

A young woman overcomes a tough start to become a track superstar.

Two organ transplants dont stop a golfer from achieving his dreams.

With the help of self-belief and a sword, a girl discovers her potential.

A boxers biggest bout is the fight for his reputation.

One man could have let a horrific accident end his racing career. Instead, he simply changed his course.

A long-distance swimmer who refuses to quit becomes Queen of the Waves.

A top basketball player takes on her most challenging opponent.

Being legally blind wont keep this runner from competing.

A college basketball player returns to make a very big point.

A speed skater has one last chance to turn heartbreak into heroics.

An unexpected new challenge doesnt stop a world-class archer from aiming to be the best.

One woman challenges herself in the most unforgiving place on Earth.

Two men compete like champions in the longest match in pro tennis history.

Sometimes finishing a race last is the most impressive feat of all.

Perfection is within reach for a wrestler born with one leg.

An athlete in a wheelchair rolls into the pages of Sports Illustrated .

Illnesses keep threatening to bring down a figure skater, but he always rises up again.

After 265 straight losses, a girls basketball team maintains a winning attitude.

A baseball player who was born hearing impaired works his way to the major leagues.

In 2005, when motocross racer Ricky James was 16 years old, he crashed during a race. James was thrown headfirst from his Yamaha YZ80. He crushed his spine, broke his wrist and a couple of ribs, and had a collapsed lung. He spent seven hours in surgery. Afterward, doctors told him that he would never walk again. He would be paraplegicparalyzed from the waist down.

Not walking wasnt what worried James the most. I didnt think about never walking again, he said. The only thing that mattered to me was that I couldnt race anymore. It turns out he was wrong. Within a year, James had adapted a hand-cranked bicycle to racing.

But Jamess world had changed forever. He adapted to life in a wheelchair. That meant figuring out new ways to do what were once simple tasksshowering, getting dressed, tying his shoes. At the same time, he set some very big goals. Within three years of his accident, he began competing in triathlons. These three-part races include swimming, biking, and running. First, James had to learn how to swim. I wanted to pick up a new challenge, he said. I wanted to prove that I was an athlete.

Only a few months later, James traveled to Hawaii for the Ironman World Championship. He used his new swimming skills to cover 2.4 miles in the ocean. He rolled along for 112 miles in his hand-cranked cycle. Finally, in an adapted race chair, he completed a 26.2-mile marathon. Twelve hours and 44 minutes after he started, he crossed the finish line.

It would be an impressive feat for anyone. For a young man who had fought for his life only a few years earlier, it was inspiring. Of course, Ricky was just staying true to the word tattooed on his right leg. It read: PERSEVERANCE.

The stories in this book celebrate that word in all its forms. Perseverance is defined best by the people who display it. It can mean courage and strength, as shown by the wrestler who became a championeven though he only had one leg. Or perseverance can mean toughness, as in the story of the golfer who had his heart replaced twice but never lost his spirit. It can translate into grit and determination, displayed by the boxer who was wrongly imprisoned but never gave up the fight for his freedom. Or it can mean the bravery and the resolve of the woman who swam across the English Channel. Perseverance can appear in the form of endurance, like the tennis players who didnt back down, even when their match took three days. Sometimes it means strength of mind, as shown by the fencer with dyslexia who turned newfound self-esteem into gold medals.

All of these stories share two important things. They all feature obstacles that seemed to stand in the way of reaching a dream. And they all feature amazing athletes who show us that it is possible to overcome nearly any challenge. Whether its on the speed skating track, the pitchers mound, or the frozen lands of Antarctica, these tales of perseverance are about people and possibilities.