Peek into the mind of a champion swimmer Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time (28 medals, including 23 gold) In this candid memoir, Phelps talks openly about his battle with attention deficit disorder, the trauma of his parents’ divorce, and the challenges that come with being thrust into the limelight. Readers will relive all the heart-stopping glory as Phelps completes his journey from the youngest man to ever set a world swimming record in 2001, to an Olympic powerhouse in 2008, to surpassing the greatest athlete of ancient Greece, Leonidas of Rhodes, with 13 triumphs in 2016. Athletes and fans alike will be fascinated by insights into Phelps’s training, mental preparation, and behind-the-scenes perspective on international athletic competitions. A chronicle of Phelps’s evolution from awkward teenager to record-breaking powerhouse, Beneath the Surface is a must-read for any sports fan. Michael Phelps is the most decorated Olympian of all time. He is a member of the U.S. men’s swim team and has competed in the 2016 Summer Rio Olympics. Phelps is considered to be one of the greatest swimmers in history, with 28 total Olympic medals, including 23 gold. Brian Cazeneuve is a writer at Sports Illustrated , where he has been covering the Olympics since 1995. His freelance work has appeared in numerous national publications, including Time , People , the New York Times , the Washington Post , NBC Sports, and others. Bob Costas is one of America’s most well-known sportscasters. He began his career as a student announcer before joining NBC Sports in 1980. He has been the host of eleven Olympic games and can be seen regularly hosting The NFL on NBC . Beneath the Surface My Story By Michael Phelps, Brian Cazeneuve Skyhorse Publishing Copyright © 2016 Michael Phelps and Brian Cazeneuve All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-68358-087-4 Contents Editor's Note, Foreword, Acknowledgments, CHAPTER 1 My Own Miracle, CHAPTER 2 Close Calls, CHAPTER 3 Into the Water, CHAPTER 4 Coach Bob, CHAPTER 5 A Sister's Brave Fight, CHAPTER 6 A Big Step, CHAPTER 7 Breaking Out, CHAPTER 8 Now for the Long Haul, CHAPTER 9 Me, Second?, CHAPTER 10 The Olympian, CHAPTER 11 On Top of the World, CHAPTER 12 Coming Together, CHAPTER 13 Life as a Pro, CHAPTER 14 Heroes and Inspirations, CHAPTER 15 Down Under Again, Mate, CHAPTER 16 The Power of Words, CHAPTER 17 Five Dogs?, CHAPTER 18 Reaching Out, CHAPTER 19 I'll Follow You, CHAPTER 20 Emotional Sendoff, CHAPTER 21 Trials and Deliberations, CHAPTER 22 Time to Think, CHAPTER 23 Bad Third, Good Third, CHAPTER 24 A Team Effort, CHAPTER 25 Dreams Fulfilled, CHAPTER 26 Touring, CHAPTER 27 A Bad Mistake, CHAPTER 28 Off To Ann Arbor, CHAPTER 29 The Wakeup Call, CHAPTER 30 New Family, New Places, CHAPTER 31 Rebuilding, CHAPTER 32 Optimism Abounds, CHAPTER 33 On Top of the Worlds, CHAPTER 34 Beijing Beckons, Photo Insert, CHAPTER 1 MY OWN MIRACLE The night before my first Olympic race in Athens, I could see myself in a movie. Hold on, it isn't as fun as it sounds. I was in my room at the Olympic village, watching Miracle, the story about the 1980 U.S. hockey team. I had watched the movie twice before, and there was one scene that really hit home. About four months before the team won the gold medal in Lake Placid and inspired the whole country, it played an exhibition game in Norway that the players never forgot. The Americans tied that night, but the listless way they played enraged their head coach, Herb Brooks. After the game was over and the players figured they'd have time to rest, Brooks made them skate from one end of the ice to the other, no matter how tired they were. After they finished one round, he'd blow his whistle and shout out, "Again." And away they'd go. "Again." The players were gasping for air. "Again." The players were falling over from exhaustion. "Again." Soon one of the workmen came by and turned off the lights in the arena, but Brooks wasn't satisfied. "Again." After a few dozen "agains," Coach Brooks finally let the players go back to their locker rooms, and they knew after that, no matter what the score, it was his job to drive them until they gave their best effort. They knew that no matter what obstacle they faced at the Olympics, even a game against the seemingly unbeatable Soviets, they had already overcome something more difficult — that night of endless "agains." They may have hated Brooks for it at the time, but how could they have been that good without him? Fast forward 24 years to a pool at the North Baltimore Aquatic Club. It was a Friday in February 2004, a day that was supposed to mean a light workout of about 5,000 easy yards. That's almost three miles, which for us is almost a day off. Instead it was the day Herb Brooks reappeared as my coach, Bob Bowman. We started doing these kicking drills: 75 yards of kicking only, at full speed, followed by 50 yards easy. A