AGASTYA MANHAS CLASS V H ROLLNO:2

WHERE THERE IS
WILL THERE IS WAY
NO LIMITS TO SUCCESS

beckoning again. This time

though, he had to overcome the
challenges of that awful injury. He
had to retrain his brain and get
back his co-ordination. He
returned to school using a
walking stick and was cruelly
taunted by his classmates.
It then took him three years to
get back to where he had been
before the awful accident. But he
suffered several fractures. Then
another blow came when his
knee snapped just after he had
been selected for the European
Championships. Behan has said
KIERAN BEHAN that was when he was about to
give up.
GYMNAST
But he never gave up and
Imagine being told that you will never walk
succeeded in becoming the
again! That was what doctors told Kieran
Challenge World Cup floor
after they removed a cancerous tumor from
champion.in 2011, and his
his thigh at the age of 10. The operation went
greatest moment of glory was
badly, so badly in fact, that he woke up
when he qualified for the London
screaming in pain from massive nerve
2012 Olympics. He had become
damage. Up to then, he had been crazy
an Olympic athlete after being
about gymnastics and was determined to
through terrible pain, trauma and
become an Olympic champion. But how could
setbacks. A glorious example of
he do that when he could not even walk now
the Olympic spirit.
and was confined to a wheelchair?
Kieran was going to show them and he
started on the long road to recovery. He was
15 months in a wheelchair but he persevered
and was back in the gym. But within a few a
months he slipped from the high bar and
sustained a terrible head injury. He was so
badly injured that frequent blackouts

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happened when he literally blinked. He

missed a whole year at school but the gym
was

BETHANY
HAMILTON
SURFER
Bethany Hamilton grew up in
Hawaii so it is not surprising to
learn that by the age of 7, she
was already able to surf waves. In
2003, a terrible tragedy struck
when a shark bit off her left arm.
As she recovered, she made two
MICHAEL JORDAN promises to herself. The first was
that she would not moan about
BASKETBALL PLAYER her terrible misfortune and the
“When you’re in a rhythm during the season, second was that she would get
you’re going to fail seven out of 10 times,”- back on the surfboard. Another
Mark Texeira, Yankees person would have been resigned
Michael Jordan has been praised to the skies to failure. But not Bethany
and is often referred to as the best basketball Hamilton. After only 26 days, she
player of all time. He attributes his success to was surfing again! She is now
his many failures because he has claimed ranked as among the top 50
they made him try even harder. They female surfers in the world. She
certainly did not discourage him. When he also won first prize in the Explorer
was very young, he was not even thought to Women’s Division of the NSSA
have a great talent. He was cut from the high National Championships.
school basketball team. He has actually She overcame many obstacles
counted his failures and they include 300 lost before becoming successful as a
games and he has missed taking the game
one armed surfer. She had
winning shot 26 times. Most champions are
moments of sheer frustration
discouraged and unmotivated by failures but
Michael Jordan had the right attitude and when adjusting to her disability.
regarded them as the recipe for his success. The accident was instrumental in
“I know that fear is an obstacle for some helping her overcome difficult
people, but for me it is just an illusion….. moments but above all taught
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Failure always makes me try harder on the her how to defeat her fear in
next opportunity.”- Michael Jordan. scary moments. She has
dedicated much of her life to
being a role model for young
amputees. She has become an
inspiration for many girls going
through amputation and
adolescence through her Friends
of Bethany charity.

MUHAMMED ALI
BOXER
“He who is not courageous enough to MICHAEL
take risks will accomplish nothing in
life.” – Muhammad Ali PHELPS
Regarded as the greatest boxer of all SWIMMER
time, Muhammad Ali won many wards such Michael Phelps is considered the
as the Golden Glove and an Olympic Gold greatest Olympian swimmer of all
medal at the 1960 games in Rome. He has time. Everyone thought that no
inspired many people by his career and his swimmer would be able to win 8
way of life. After retiring from the ring, he gold medals in just one Olympic
devoted his life to philanthropy and charities, Games. Michael did just that and
especially those connected with Parkinson’s he has 19 Olympic medals, 15 of
disease from which he suffered. Muhammad which are gold! The remarkable
Ali was no stranger to risk. From the early thing about him is that as a child
age of 12 when someone stole his bike, he he suffered from ADHD and was
was determined to take on any future on medication for some of that
thieves, so he learned how to fight. time. Most people assume that
Many athletes go through a very difficult people with ADHD suffer from
process of coping with perfectionism and restlessness, impulsiveness and a
their fear of failure. This often prevents them very short attention span. But
from reaching their full potential. Anything they also have an incredible
less than perfection and winning is counted capacity to remain hyperfocused
as failure. What athletes do not want to on an activity they are passionate
happen often does because they are haunted about. Michael has been able to
by fear of making mistakes. This mindset use this with enormous success.
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results in more tension, indecision and being By channelling his energy and
too careful. Muhammad Ali was a superb focus, he has been able to exploit
example of taking calculated risks and has the positive side of ADHD.
remained an inspiration for many Phelps has shown that he can
generations. beat the most disciplined and
strongest swimmers in the world
and is an inspiring example to
anyone who suffers from a
mental disorder or other
disability. He has another
secret in that he uses the power
of visualizing success before he
starts any swim. He started this
process when he was only 7
years old. He realized there were
no limits to success and once#
#you are passionate about your
objective, nothing can stop you.
“Nobody is going to put a limit on
what I’m doing. I’m going to do
what I want to do, when I want to
do it. That is how I have always
worked. If I want something I am
going to go and get it.”- Michael
Phelps.

MILKHA SINGH
ATHLETE
As a child, Milkha Singh lost his parents, a
brother and two sisters to the partition, and
consequently, he wanted to become a dacoit.
But fate had greater plans in store for him
when he joined the Indian Army and started
participating in running events. The rest, as
they say, is history.

MARY KOM
BOXER
Young Mary helped her parents
on the field and attended
government school. The family,
at times, struggled to make ends
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meet, and Mary's goal was to lift

DASHRATH MANJHI her family out of poverty. Mary
fought against all odds and today
MOUNTAIN MAN Manipur's most famous daughter
He was an outcast, a landless labourer who
is a national superstar.
had to trek across an entire mountain every
day, just to reach the farm that he worked
on. It was a treacherous trek, and led to *for a thought, he went ahead
accidents often. His people needed help, and did just that with his bare
there were lives at stake every day. He hands“I do not care for these
decided, if no one would help his people, he awards, this fame, the money,”
would. Then, without pausing* he said. “All I want is a road, a
. school, and a hospital for our
people. They toil so hard. It will
help their women and children.”
It would take them 30 years to tar
his road. He had carved out a
road 360 feet long, 30 feet wide It
would take the government 30
years more to tar the road

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