Tim Tebow and Dean Karnazes: Athletes Who Inspire Us to Succeed!

Every two years, the entire world joins to celebrate its most skilled athletes, and watches avidly as they compete to win the gold. While the 2012 Summer Olympics end this weekend, we can still admire the stunning willpower and determination to succeed of these athletes—and many others—long after the closing ceremony is over. They are a source of inspiration to us, and they drive us to succeed in our own lives, whether we’re at home, in the office, or on the field ourselves.

To celebrate this year’s amazing Olympic Games, we’re proud to present two examples of exemplary athletes whose personal resolve continues to lift them to greater heights: Tim Tebow (TEBOW TIME; Tarcher/Penguin paperback; August 30, 2012) and Dean Karnazes (ULTRAMARATHON MAN; Tarcher/Penguin paperback; out now).

Tim Tebow (TEBOW TIME) on never giving up:

“Any time you’re getting beaten like that you just continue to fight. It doesn’t change who you are, how you play, how you go out there—you should be the same at all times. That’s what I wanted to show and it didn’t matter if it was the first play or the last play or if we were down by 42, I was going to be the same player and I was going to still give everything I have because that’s all I have to give. Every time I step on the field I’m going to give my whole heart regardless of the score.” —Post-game press conference, Denver Broncos vs. New England Patriots, January 14, 2012

Tim Tebow on how to succeed:

“Whatever you’re doing, put everything into it. Put your whole heart into it and you’re going to get something out of it. So if you really want to become your best, push yourself in whatever you’re doing as hard as you possibly can and you will find results.” —Stack-TV: “Tim Tebow’s NFL Off-Season Workout,” February 1, 2012

Dean Karnazes (ULTRAMARATHON MAN) on persistence and self-transformation:

“It struck me in the space of a few steps that my past as I knew it had suddenly ceased to exist. Nothing would ever be the same to me from this point on. I’d been profoundly transformed by this journey, in ways I had yet to understand. This person who was staggering and crawling and persisting at mile 99 was a different being than the guy who had started the race just yesterday morning. I was more capable than I imagined, better than I ever thought I could be. This realization was like stepping into another dimension.

“Covering 100 miles on foot was more than a lesson in survival, it was an education on the grace of living. Running is a solo sport, but it was no longer about me anymore; I became almost irrelevant. My struggles were not about a single runner trying to finish this unfathomable challenge but about the greater ability of a human being to persevere against insurmountable odds.”

Pre-order TEBOW TIME (Tarcher/Penguin paperback; August 30, 2012) on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or IndieBound.

Purchase ULTRAMARATHON MAN (Tarcher/Penguin paperback; out now) on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or IndieBound.