Michael Fred Phelps

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My name is Celina, I am 14 years old and I study at Colegio Columbia in 9th grade. I think that a hero is someone you admire, maybe you don’t know him or her but it is your role model and he or she doesn’t have to be famous or have superpowers; a hero is someone that inspires you to follow your dreams.

Michael Phelps was born and raised in the Rodgers Forge. He graduated from Towson High School in 2003. He has two sisters, Whitney and Hilary. Phelps had a difficult childhood, starting with the divorce of his parents in 1994. Since this happened, Michael hasn’t talked a lot to his father, and then he was diagnosed with hyperactivity disorder. After practicing different sports like baseball and football, at last he found his true talent, swimming.

Michael was born to be a swimmer because of characteristics like long arms, thin torso and short legs. When he was fifteen he competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, becoming the youngest American male swimmer at the Olympic Games and he finished in fifth place in the 200 meter butterfly. Then he broke the world record in the 200 m butterfly, at 15 years and 9 months, becoming the youngest man to set a swimming world record. In 2004 he won six gold medals and two bronze medals in Athens and in the Beijing Olympic Games he won 8 gold medals to break the world record.

Michael Phelps is my hero because he is a person that made history and I identify with him because I fight for what I want and I never give up. He also inspires me to follow my dreams and goals. He is someone that has overcome many challenges to be the person that he is now. He practiced and made a big effort to become better. I think everyone can break world records and win gold medals in competitions you only have to follow your dream and never stop trying or practicing.