The Try Athletes

Did you know that I am famous? Well, I am. I was once quoted in the New Era; June of 1996 to be exact. The stake I grew up in holds Youth Olympics each year. There are many events from track-n-field, baking, sewing, ping-pong, to scholastics. One year I won first year in baking (that cake was soooo good-I'll have to post the recipe sometime), I entered a quilt I made once but it didn't win anything. Our ward volleyball team won first place one year and that was a major highlight. My last year in youth olympics I decided to try public speaking. Everyone sat in the same room and waited for your turn, then 5 at a time you were called into a room where you were shown the topics and then you had 20 minutes to write a talk. Then you were taken into the chapel, which was packed full, and delivered your speech. I still remember my topic: "tell about an ancestor who influenced your life." I spoke about my grandma and how she picked me up at school with her curlers in her hair. And I even won 3rd place. I wish I had tried it in the years past. My brother Spencer and I did pretty good at ping-pong doubles, getting 3rd place one year. I wish I had done the bike race, seeing as how I do so many triathlons now; that could have been some good practice. But my favorite events by far were the track-n-field. I don't want to brag but I was pretty speedy back in the day. One year, a New Era writer came to do some reporting. She met with me after a race at the track and I was quoted in the article.

"Jessica Forsberg, a 16-year-old whose talents shine brightest on track-and-field events, sums it up best. Still breathless from a race, she says, “When you cross that finish line, even if you didn’t win, you feel like you’ve succeeded. Winning isn’t everything; it’s just for fun.”

Pretty profound for a 16 year old, eh?

Click here for the entire article.