Michael Phelps (center) visited Wiley Middle School in Leander, Texas, on October 6, to motivate, promote, and reward. The school won the visit by having the best book fair in the country. (Photo Courtesy Scholastic)
How Michael Phelps Motivates
Scholastic Book Fair winners spend a day with Olympic champion
Kid Reporter Shelby Fairleigh interviews Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps at Wiley Middle School in Leander, Texas, on October 6, 2009. (Photo Courtesy Scholastic)
Set goals and follow your dreams, Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps told students at Wiley Middle School in Leander, Texas, on Tuesday. The students in this particular school must have already known that. Phelps’ appearance was the reward for winning first place in the Scholastic Book Fairs’ National Middle School Contest.
His appearance helped reach another student goal, one established by the award-winning book fair. The school transformed its media center into Mrs. Magorium’s Reading Emporium, to promote the love of books and reading. Phelps came to motivate students to study and work hard, and to promote his own book, No Limits: The Will to Succeed.
Phelps Phans
The packed gym went wild when the winner of 14 gold swimming medals stepped through the door. Kids yelled and stomped on the bleachers. They even started doing the wave.
"It was really cool," said Macy, one of the students at the event. "He described how you should follow your dream and never give up."
Or as Phelps put it: "You never want to sell yourself short."
Lessons in Motivation
In his motivating speech, Phelps spoke about how he learned the importance of setting goals in his own life. He said he has was inspired to set goals by his two older sisters. He has been setting goals for himself since he was 7 years old.
At the age of 11, his coach Bob Bowman (who is still with him today) told him that if he trained hard he could compete in the next summer Olympic Games. Phelps got to work and broke his first world record when he was 15.
"Once I accomplished that, I wanted to do something better," he told the Leander middle schoolers.
At his first Olympic competition, Phelps came in fifth and was disappointed. He set another goal. He decided he would win eight gold medals at his second Olympic Games. He was again disappointed, but it didn't stop him. He just worked harder. Last year, at the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing, China, Phelps again set his sights on eight gold medals. After he earned his sixth gold medal, he went to his coach, discouraged.
"I have nothing left; I am completely drained," he told Coach Bowman. With the help of his coach and his own determination, he pushed through the exhaustion and didn't give up.
"I swam the last two races on just adrenalin," he said.
Phelps went on to claim those two events and win a total of eight record-breaking gold medals—the most in Olympic history.
Next stop for Phelps? Retirement was his first thought. But after talking it over with his coach, he established bigger and better goals for the 2012 Olympics in London, England. He's keeping those goals a secret for now, he told Wiley Middle School students.
Next summer, Phelps will compete against the European swim team in his first big event since the 2008 games. Phelps said he is working hard on getting back into shape in time for his next event. The swimmer practices 12 times a week: nine times in the pool and three times in a gym.
One-on-One
After the assembly, Phelps answered questions and signed copies of his new book.
"What is the best part of swimming?" one student asked.
"One of the coolest things is representing our country," he said.
He also stopped to answer questions from the Scholastic Kids Press Corps. Kids want to know, this reporter asked, what do you think about when swimming a long distance? Quick answer: he sings whatever song he last heard.
Phelps talked about his swimming favs, too. His favorite stroke when he was younger was the 50-yard butterfly.
When asked for a tip on how to improve this young swimmer's performance, he said to practice kicking.
"Most world class swimmers are great kickers," he said. One-fourth of his workout is focused on kicking.
Phelps said he is most comfortable and happy when he is in the water.
"The pool is like my home, it's part of my life," he said. "It has given me great opportunities."
Water and sport also gave Phelps something to aim for in life.
"Dream big and don't give up," he said, no matter what your "home" turns out to be.
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