Chasing Water: Elegy of an Olympian

Description

Anthony Ervin and Constantine Markides are the recipients of the 2018 Buck
Dawson Author Award presented by the Internationla Swimming Hall of Fame!”Here
Ervin and swim trainer and journalist Markides combine talents to create a
biography that is part first-hand narrative by Ervin, with Markides filling in
the details and providing context. The formula works, pulling readers into
Ervin’s experience of the thrill of victory and search for meaning…Featuring
more depth, breadth, truth, and the effects of reckless choices than found in
traditional athlete biographies, this gripping account is just in time for the
gear up to the Rio 2016 Olympics. Readers will understand the psyche and life
of elite athletes as never before, then cheer Ervin on in his attempt to make
another Olympic team.” –Library Journal”A celebrated Olympian recounts how he
rose to the top of his sport, crashed, and found redemption…This book, which
tells his story through a narrative that interweaves the former gold
medalist’s memories with commentary by his friend and colleague Markides,
reveals the extreme highs and lows that characterized Ervin’s remarkable life
and career…The author never flinches at revealing his less-than-perfect
past, and the humility he demonstrates at coming to terms with his own egotism
and personal shortcomings makes the book frequently compelling. A provocative
and refreshingly honest redemption memoir.” –Kirkus Reviews”Markides smartly
combines his own journalistic account with a parallel narrative in which
Ervin…explains his life and style. Some talents simply defy explanation,
however, and Ervin may be in that category…The story of his comeback at 31
(ancient for a swimmer) is rendered more amazing by the contrast with what
went before.” –Booklist”For Anthony Ervin, the stretch between his two
greatest athletic achievements–two Olympic gold medals–included a suicide
attempt, a period of homelessness and a stint in a rock band. Jobs found, then
lost. Too much drinking, too many drugs. Depression. Confusion. And then, a
kind of rebirth.” –USA Today”An inspiring, humorous and often profound
biography.” –People Magazine”Anthony Ervin is a lot of things. He is an open
book and a closed circuit, a body fueled by a brain, an old man with a young
soul. He is the American Dream. He is, once again, improbably, an Olympic
champion.” –Yahoo”[Ervin’s] story is an amazing comeback tale.” –Huffington
PostEvery four years in the Olympic cycle the surge of national interest in
swimming grows, and with it a desire to be captivated by its stars. This book
tells the dramatic, surprising, and sometimes provocative path that Anthony
Ervin has taken to become one of those captivating Olympic heroes. Not your
typical sports memoir, Chasing Water also contains arresting black-and-white
drawings and a graphic story extra, as well as an inventive and mercurial
narrative style that morphs chapter by chapter to reflect Ervin’s restless,
multifaceted life.Ervin won a gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games at
the age of nineteen. He is an athlete branded with a slew of titles including
being the first US Olympic swimmer of African American descent, along with
Jewish heritage, who also grew up with Tourette’s syndrome. He shocked the
sporting world by retiring soon after claiming two world titles following the
2000 Olympics. Auctioning off his gold medal for charity, he set off on a part
spiritual quest, part self-destructive bender that involved Zen temples, fast
motorcycles, tattoo parlors, and rock ‘n’ roll bands. Then Ervin resurfaced in
2012 to not only make the US Olympic team twelve years after his first
appearance, but to continue his career by swimming faster than ever before.
Read more

Features:

Product Details:

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Edge of Sports; Illustrated edition (April 5, 2016)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 300 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1617754447
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 49
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 13.8 ounces
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.5 x 8.5 inches
• Best Sellers Rank: #1,239,473 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #297 in Olympic Games #398 in Swimming (Books) #33,192 in Memoirs (Books)
• #297 in Olympic Games
• #398 in Swimming (Books)