One of the great moments in sports history came on Sunday afternoon when the New Orleans Saints and the Detroit Lions were playing. The Lions were leading 17-16, with the time running out. The Saints had the ball in mid-field. They called time out with two seconds left on the clock. The coach then sent Tom Dempsey, an uncertain place-kicker born with a deformed right arm and hand and with half a right foot, to try a field goal.
It was a 63-yard attempt. The longest field goal ever kicked in the N.F.L. to date had been 57 yards. But the athlete with the deformed foot kicked the ball through the uprights and the Saints won.
When asked after the game how he did it, Dempsey attributed his success to high school and college coaches and the pros who “spent so much time encouraging me that they simply forgot to tell me that I couldn’t do.”
Believe in yourself. Believe that you can.
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