If you don't know the name Katie Ledecky, you will soon. She is probably the greatest female swimmer heading to the Olympics in 2016, and she is only 19. She is 12-0 in individual finals at major international meets and holds 11 world records. Michael J. Joyner, a researcher at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, helped put that in perspective: "She's dominating by the widest margin in international sport, winning by 1 or 2 percent. If [a runner] won the 10,000 meters by that wide a margin, they'd win by 100 meters. One or 2 percent in the Tour de France, over about 80 hours of racing, would be 30 or 40 minutes. It's just absolutely remarkable."

While most swimmers start off slow because they are afraid they will having nothing left in the tank when they finish. Katie is the complete opposite. She says, "I'm always afraid I'll get to the end and have too much left." But as the story says, "Out of the pool, though, there is nothing outwardly obvious about Ledecky that would suggest she is among the best athletes on the planet." Bruce Gemmell her coach says, "You look at Katie, just like with Michael [Phelps], and you realize the differentiator is between the ears. And their hearts. Their appetite for competition, their unwillingness to lose, and their embracing the challenge." But the secret to her success, like almost all other athletes, is hard work.

Possible Preaching Angle:

Come to think of it, Katie's motto is a good way to approach life—"I'm always afraid I'll get to the end and have too much left."

Source:

Dave Sheinin, “How Katie Ledecky became better at swimming than anyone is at anything, “The Washington Post (7-24-16)