Katie Ledecky: Swimming is a Lifestyle
Excerpt from Katie Ledecky's memoir: Just Add Water (2024)
[Scroll down for the English]
KISWAHILI
"Kusema waziwazi, kuogelea ni mtindo wa maisha.
“Ndivyo unavyohusika zaidi, ndivyo unavyohitaji kujitolea zaidi. Uzoefu wangu wa shule na chuo kikuu haukuwa wa kawaida, kwa sababu spoti ya kuogelea inahitaji malipo kutoka kila kona ya maisha yako.
“Nililala mapema. Nilitumia wikendi yangu kufanya kazi za nyumbani. Nilikula chakula sahihi, siyo chakula cha kufurahisha. Mimi sikuyumbayumba mara chache.
“Lakini vile ambavyo watu wengine wangeona kuwa mizigo, niliona kuwa fursa. Upungufu huu ulikuwa hatua za ngazi kwa mafanikio.”
- Katie Ledecky, muogeleaji wa Marekani ambaye ameshinda medali 14 za Olimpiki na medali 26 za Ubingwa wa Dunia; alianza kuogelea akiwa na umri wa miaka 6 pamoja na kaka yake mkubwa.
ENGLISH TRANSLATION
“Put plainly, swimming is a lifestyle.
“The deeper in you get, the more commitment it requires. My school and college experiences were not typical, because swimming demands payment from every corner of your life.
“I went to bed early. I used my weekends to do homework. I ate the right things, not the fun things. I rarely wavered.
“But what other people would see as burdens, I viewed as opportunities. These sacrifices were steps on a ladder to success.”
- Katie Ledecky, American swimmer who has won 14 Olympic medals and 26 World Championship medals; she started swimming at the age of 6 alongside her older brother.
Asante na tutaonana tena (Thank you and may we see each other again),
Mmerikani
Chanzo (source): Katie Ledecky. Just Add Water: My Swimming Life. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2024, page 8. Kindle Edition. Ledecky’s website is here.
Wow. Persistence!