Michael Fred Phelps II

Phelps with all his Olympic medalshttps://www.esquire.com/sports/news/a51719/michael-phelps-olympic-medals/Michael Fred Phelps II, is a retired competitive swimmer, who was born on June 30, 1985 in Baltimore, Maryland. He is the most decorated Olympian with a total of 28 medals. By the time Phelps retired at Rio 2016 at the age of 31, he collected a total of 23 gold medals , 3 silvers, and 2 bronzes. He is the long course world record holder in the 100 meter butterfly, 200 meter butterfly and 400 meter individual medley. 

Michael Phelps Swimming as a teenhttps://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/olympics/bal-young-michael-phelps-photos-20160811-photogallery.htmlAt the age of 7, Phelps began swimming when his two older sisters, Whitney and Hilary joined the local swim team. When he first started swimming, he was not able to put his head under water because he was "a little scared", so the instructor let him float around on his back. The first stroke he mastered was backstroke. After seeing Tom Malchow and Tom Dolan swimming in the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta, Phelps began to start dreaming of becoming a champion. His swimming career started at the Loyola High School pool. By the age of 10, he started training at the North Baltimore Aquatic Club with his coach Bob Bowman. The coach recognized Phelps's talent and potential for competitive swimming, so they began intense training. 

Phelps at the 2008 Summer Olympics https://www.drjimtaylor.com/4.0/michael-phelps-knows-power-visualization-short-video/Phelps made the U.S. National B Team at the age of 15, in 1999. He became the youngest American male swimmer to compete at an Olympic Games in 68 years. He has set 39 world records, 29 individual and 10 relay, which is more than any other swimmer. When he broke the world record in the 100-meter butterfly at the 2009 World Championships, Phelps swam a speedy time of 5.5 miles per hour. His top swimming speed is at 6 miles per hour. 

Michael at his foundationhttps://www.islasurf.org/michael-phelps-foundation-caps-for-a-cause/ After the 2008 Summer Olympics he started the The Michael Phelps Foundation, which focuses on promoting healthy, active lifestyles, expanding he opportunities for participation for the sport of swimming. The foundation provides support to the Boys and Girls Clubs including financial assistance for the cost of the overall program along with training, staffing, supplies, equipment, pool access and maintenance, medals, member handbook, and assorted prizes.

Michael Phelpshttps://www.zimbio.com/photos/Michael+Phelps/Heart+Truth+Red+Dress+Collection+2012+Fashion/GcGtR17aaNiMichael Phelps inspires me to be a better person and makes me want change the world in a positive way. Every time he swims an event, he puts his best foot forward and doesn't care what the outcome is. "I think goals should never be easy, they should force you to work, even if they are uncomfortable at the time." This encourages me to work to reach for my goals.