What I learned when I conquered the world's toughest triathlon | Minda Dentler

翻译人员: Yan Gao 校对人员: Yolanda Zhang

It was October 13, 2012,

那是2012年10月13日，

a day that I will never forget.

这一天我永远不会忘记。

I was on my bike, pushing up what seemed like a never-ending barren hill.

我骑着自行车，缓慢爬上 一座看似永无尽头的荒山。

And it wasn't just any hill:

它不仅仅是一座小山：

it was a 15-mile climb up to a town called Hawi

而是一条15英里的爬升路线，

通向夏威夷大岛上的哈维小镇。

on the Big Island of Hawaii.

And it wasn't just any ride:

这也不是一次普通的骑行：

it was at the Ironman World Championship.

这是铁人三项世界锦标赛。

I can still feel my muscles burning.

我现在还能感受到肌肉在燃烧。

I was struggling, tired and dehydrated,

我苦苦挣扎，身体疲软脱水，

as I could feel the heat

我可以感受到沥青散发出的热气，

emanating from the asphalt, measuring almost 98 degrees.

差不多有华氏98度。

I was near the halfway point of the bike portion

我正在接近自行车赛程的半途点，

of one of the most prestigious, longest,

这是世界上最负盛名、耗时最长的

单日耐力赛之一。

single-day endurance race events in the world.

Every year, during my childhood,

小时候，每年，

I watched this very race on TV in our family living room.

我都在家里客厅的电视上 观看这场比赛。

I sat next to my dad on our 1970s-style orange and brown sofa,

我和我爸并排坐在 70年代风格的橙棕色沙发上，

and I remember being in utter awe

我还记得我对这些运动员

at how these athletes pushed themselves to their limit

在这场艰苦比赛中 如何挑战自己的极限

in this grueling race.

感到无比敬畏。

And just so you don't get the wrong idea,

但你不要误会，

my family members weren't just spectators.

我的家人不只是观众。

They were incredibly athletic,

他们的运动能力超强，

and I always participated from the sidelines,

而我总是在场外参与，

cheering on my three siblings or handing out water at local races.

为我的三个兄弟姐妹欢呼， 或者在本地比赛中递水。

I remember wanting so badly to be able to compete, but I couldn't.

我记得自己有多渴望能 参加比赛，但我不能。

Even though I couldn't play sports,

虽然不能参加体育运动，

I decided to be active in my community.

但我决定积极参与社区活动。

I volunteered at the local hospital in high school.

我在高中时到本地医院做志愿者。

In college, I interned at the White House,

在大学里，我在白宫实习，

studied abroad in Spain

去西班牙留学，

and backpacked through Europe all by myself

还独自一人背包穿越欧洲，

with my leg braces and crutches.

带着我的腿架和手杖。

Upon graduating, I moved to New York City for a job in management consulting,

毕业后，我搬到纽约市 做管理咨询工作，

earned an MBA, got married

获得MBA学位，结婚，

and now have a daughter.

现在有了一个女儿。

(Applause)

(掌声)

At age 28, I was introduced to the sport of hand-cycling,

28岁时，我接触了手动自行车运动

and then triathlon,

以及铁人三项，

and by luck, I met Jason Fowler, an Ironman World Champion,

而且特别幸运，我在 一个残疾运动员训练营

遇到了铁人世界冠军杰森·福勒。

at a camp for athletes with disabilities.

And like me, he competed in a wheelchair.

和我一样，他也坐轮椅比赛。

And with his encouragement, at age 34,

在他的鼓励下，34岁的我

I decided to go after Kona.

决定去科纳参赛。

The Kona, or Hawaii Ironman

科纳，或者叫夏威夷铁人

is the oldest Iron-distance race in the sport,

是这项运动中 历史最悠久的长距离比赛，

and if you're not familiar, it's like the Super Bowl of triathlon.

如果你不熟悉这赛事， 可以说它是三项全能的超级碗。

And the Ironman, for a wheelchair athlete like me,

对于像我这样的轮椅运动员来说， 铁人三项包括

consists of a 2.4-mile open-water swim in the Pacific Ocean,

太平洋里2.4英里的天然水域游泳，

a 112-mile hand cycle ride in lava fields --

熔岩地手动自行车骑行112英里——

now, that sounds exotic,

听起来很炫

but it's not as scenic as it sounds, and it's pretty desolate --

但它并不像听起来那么风景优美， 而且相当荒凉——

and then you top it off with a marathon,

最后是马拉松跑，

or a 26.2-mile run in 90-degree heat

或者说用竞技轮椅 在90华氏度的高温下

using a racing wheelchair.

跑26.2英里。

That's right, it's a total distance of 140.6 miles using just your arms

没错，在不到17个小时的时间里，

要全靠手臂完成140.6英里的路程。

in less than 17 hours.

No female wheelchair athlete had ever completed the race

由于严格的、看似不可能的截止时间，

because of the strict, seemingly impossible cutoff times.

从没有轮椅女运动员完成比赛。

And so there I was,

所以我就去了，

putting it all out on the line.

准备全力以赴。

And when I finally reached the top of that 15-mile climb,

当我最终到达那个 15英里坡道的顶峰时，

I was discouraged.

我灰心了。

There was no way I was going to make that swim in my time limit

我不可能在10个半小时的时间限制内

完成游泳赛程，

of 10 and a half hours,

because I was almost two hours off pace.

因为我的进度慢了近两小时。

I had to make the agonizing decision

我不得不作出痛苦的决定，

to quit.

退出。

I removed my timing chip, and I handed it over to a race official.

我取下计时芯片， 交给了一个工作人员。

My day was done.

我的一天结束了。

My best friend Shannon and my husband Shawn

我最好的朋友香农和我丈夫肖恩

were waiting at the top of Hawi to drive me back to town.

在哈维山顶等着开车载我回市区。

And on my way back to town, I began to cry.

在回城路上，我开始哭。

I had failed.

我失败了。

My dream of completing the Ironman World Championship

完成铁人三项世界锦标赛的梦想

was crushed.

破灭了。

I was embarrassed.

我感到丢脸。

I felt like I'd messed up.

好像自己搞砸了一切。

I worried about what my friends, my family and people at work

我担心我的朋友、家人和同事

would think of me.

会怎么看我。

What was I going to put on Facebook?

我该在Facebook上晒什么？

(Laughter)

(笑声)

How was I going to explain to everyone

我该如何向每个人解释

that things didn't go the way I had assumed or planned?

事情没有按照 我的设想或计划进行？

A few weeks later I was talking to Shannon about the Kona "disaster,"

几周后，我和香农 聊起科纳的“灾难”，

and she said this to me:

她这样对我说：

"Minda, big dreams and goals can only be realized when you're ready to fail."

“明达，只有当你准备好面对失败时， 伟大的梦想和目标才能实现。”

我知道我必须把那次失败 抛诸脑后，才能前进，

I knew I had to put that failure behind me in order to move forward,

and it wouldn't be the first time that I had faced insurmountable odds.

而且这也不是我第一次 面临无法克服的困难。

I was born in Bombay, India,

我出生在印度孟买，

and just before my first birthday, I contracted polio,

就在一岁生日前， 我感染了小儿麻痹症，

which left me paralyzed from the hips down.

导致臀部以下瘫痪。

Unable to care for me, my birth mother left me at an orphanage.

由于无法照顾我， 我的亲生母亲把我留在了孤儿院。

Fortunately, I was adopted by an American family,

幸运的是，我被一个美国家庭收养了，

and I moved to Spokane, Washington

我在三岁生日后不久

just shortly after my third birthday.

就搬到了华盛顿的斯波坎。

Over the next few years, I underwent a series of surgeries

在接下来的几年里，

我在臀部、腿部和背部 做了一系列手术，

on my hips, my legs and my back

that allowed me to walk with leg braces and crutches.

让我可以用腿架和手杖走路。

As a child, I struggled with my disability.

还是小孩时，我为自己的残疾而苦恼。

I felt like I didn't fit in.

我觉得我不合群。

People stared at me all the time,

大家一直盯着我看，

and I was embarrassed about wearing a back brace and leg braces,

我穿着背撑和腿架很尴尬，

and I always hid my chicken legs under my pants.

我总是把小细腿藏在长裤里。

As a young girl, I thought thick, heavy braces on my legs

变成年轻姑娘时，我认为

我腿上厚重的支架看起来 既不漂亮也没女人味。

did not look pretty or feminine.

Among my generation, I am one of the very few individuals in the US

在我这一代人当中，美国极少有人 因小儿麻痹症而瘫痪，

who are living with paralysis by polio today.

可我是其中一个。

Many people who contract polio in developing countries

在发展中国家，许多 小儿麻痹症感染者

do not have access to the same medical care, education,

得不到和我在美国一样的

or opportunities like I have had in America.

医疗、教育或机会。

Many do not even live to reach adulthood.

许多人甚至活不到成年。

I have the humbling knowledge that, had I not been adopted,

我深深知道，如果我没有被收养，

I most certainly wouldn't be in front of you today.

我今天肯定不会出现在你面前。

I may not even be alive.

我甚至可能已经死了。

All of us, in our own lives,

每个人在自己的生活中，

may face seemingly insurmountable goals.

都可能面临着看似不可实现的目标。

I want to share with you what I learned

我想和你分享

when I tried again.

我再次尝试时学到了什么。

One year after my first attempt,

在我第一次尝试的一年后，

on a sunny Saturday morning,

在一个阳光明媚的周六早上，

my husband Shawn

我的丈夫肖恩

dumped me into the ocean at the Kona Pier

把我扔进了科纳码头的海里，

and, with 2,500 of my closest friends and competitors,

和我的2500个好友兼对手一起，

we started swimming as that cannon went off promptly at 7am.

在早上7点准时响起的 发令枪声中开始游泳。

I focused on one stroke at a time, staying in between bodies,

在人群里，我一下一下地划水，

counting my strokes --

数着我的动作——

one, two, three, four --

一、二、三、四——

and lifting my head to sight every so often

每隔一段时间抬起头来看一次，

just so I wouldn't get too off track.

让自己别偏离赛道太多。

And when I finally reached the shoreline,

当我终于到达岸边时，

Shawn picked me up, and he carried me out of the water.

肖恩拉住我，把我从水里抱出来。

I was so stunned and thrilled when Shawn had told me I had managed

当肖恩告诉我， 我游了1个小时43分钟，

a one-hour-and-43-minute swim time.

我极其震惊和激动。

On to the bike segment.

接下来是自行车赛段。

I had eight hours and 45 minutes to complete the 112-mile bike course.

我有8小时45分钟去完成 112英里的自行车路段。

I broke up the course in seven- to 10-mile segments in my mind

为了减少比赛的艰巨性，

我在脑海中把赛道分成 7到10英里的小段。

just to reduce the enormity of the race.

The first 40 miles, they clipped by as we benefited from a little tail wind.

前40英里时间过得很快， 因为有点顺风，帮了我们的忙。

By 4pm, I had made it to mile 94,

到下午4点，我骑到94英里处了，

and I did the math and I realized I was in serious time jeopardy

我算了一下，意识到 我有严重的时间危机，

because I had 18 miles to go and less than 90 minutes,

因为我还有18英里要骑， 只剩不到90分钟了，

and that included a few sizable hill climbs.

其中还包括几段相当大的爬坡。

I was stressed out, and I was scared

我差点崩溃，

害怕自己又不能按时完赛。

that I wasn't going to make that time cutoff again.

At this point, I pushed my internal voice aside that said,

此时，我把心里的声音 “好痛苦，放弃吧。”

"This hurts. Quit."

抛到一边。

And I told myself, "Minda, you better focus.

我告诉自己，“明达， 你最好集中注意力。

Focus on what you can control,

专注于你能控制的事情，

and that is your attitude and your effort."

那就是你的态度和努力。

I resolved to be OK being uncomfortable,

我决定接受这种不舒服，

and I told myself, "Push harder,

我告诉自己，“再加把劲，

forget about the pain,

忘记疼痛，

and keep that laser focus."

让注意力高度集中。”

For the next 90 minutes, I cranked as though my life depended on it.

在之后90分钟里，我发疯一样， 好像我的生命依赖于此。

And when I rolled into town,

当我进入城区时，

I heard on the loudspeaker,

我听见扩音器里在喊，

"Minda Dentler is one of the last competitors to make the bike cutoff."

“明达·丹特勒是最后一个 按时完成自行车赛程的选手。”

I did it!

我成功了！

(Applause)

(掌声)

By only three minutes.

只提前了三分钟。

(Laughter)

(笑声)

It was 5:27pm,

下午5：27，

and I had been racing for 10-and-a-half hours.

我已经参赛10个半小时。

The first 10 miles of the run went pretty quickly,

前10英里跑得很快，

as I was so excited to finally pass people

因为我非常兴奋，终于可以

with my three wheels to their two feet.

用我的三个轮子赶超别人的双脚。

The sun quickly went down,

太阳很快就下山了，

and I found myself pulling up to the bottom of Palani hill,

我发现自己正爬到帕拉尼山的山脚，

looking straight into a half-mile hill that looked like Mt. Everest

眼前是赛道124英里处的 半英里长的山丘，

at mile 124 of the race.

它看着像珠穆朗玛峰。

My friends and family were ready at their stations

我的亲人朋友已经就位，

to talk me up that hill.

准备一直鼓励着我登上那座山丘。

I was struggling, tired,

我挣扎着，很累，

desperately gripping those rims just so I wouldn't tip backwards.

拼命抓着车子的轮辋， 让自己不要向后翻。

When I finally reached the top of that hill,

当我终于到达山顶时，

I turned left onto a very lonely 15-mile stretch onto the Queen K Highway,

左转经过非常孤独的15英里路段 到达皇后大道，

totally exhausted.

筋疲力尽。

I pressed on, focusing on one push at a time.

我继续往前推，专注每一下推动。

By 9:30pm,

到了晚上9点半，

I made that final right-hand turn onto Ali'i Drive.

我完成最后一个右转 上了阿里大道。

I heard the crowd's roar, and I was overcome with emotion.

我听到了人群的吼声，我激动万分。

I crossed that finish line.

我，跨过了那条终点线。

(Applause)

(掌声)

(Applause ends)

(掌声结束)

And my final time was 14 hours and 39 minutes.

我的完赛时间是14小时39分钟。

For the first time in the 35-year history,

在35年的历史中，

第一次有轮椅女运动员

a female wheelchair athlete

completed the Ironman World Championship.

完成了铁人三项世界锦标赛。

(Applause)

(掌声)

(Applause ends)

(掌声结束)

And it wasn't just any female athlete.

而且那不是 某一位女运动员。

It was me.

那是我啊。

(Laughter)

(笑声)

A paralyzed orphan from India.

来自印度的瘫痪孤儿。

Against all odds, I achieved my dream,

排除万难，我实现了自己的梦想，

通过对自己的个人承诺，

and through this very personal commitment to myself,

I slowly realized that completing the Ironman

我慢慢意识到完成铁人赛

was about more than conquering Kona.

不仅仅是征服科纳。

It was about conquering polio

这是为了战胜小儿麻痹症

and other disabling but preventable diseases,

和其他致残但可预防的疾病，

not only for myself,

不仅是为了我自己，

but for the millions of children

而且是为了数百万

who have been and still will be afflicted by vaccine-preventable diseases.

已经患上和仍将患上 疫苗可预防疾病的儿童。

Today, we are closer than ever to eliminating one of those diseases

今天，我们更有可能在全世界范围

everywhere in the world.

消灭那些疾病。

In the mid-1980s, polio once paralyzed more than 350,000 children a year

在1980年代中期，脊髓灰质炎每年

使125个国家35万多名儿童瘫痪。

in more than 125 countries.

That amounted to a staggering 40 cases an hour.

这相当于惊人的每小时40例。

By contrast, so far this year,

相比之下，今年迄今为止，

the last endemic countries have reported a total of only 12 cases.

最后一个流行国家报告的 病例总数只有12例。

Since 1988, more than 2.5 billion children have been immunized against polio,

自1988年以来，超过25亿儿童 接受小儿麻痹症免疫接种，

and an estimated 16 million children,

估计有1600万儿童

who otherwise would have been paralyzed like me,

可能像我一样瘫痪，

are walking.

因疫苗而正在行走。

Despite this incredible progress,

尽管取得了令人难以置信的进展，

但我们知道，在根除小儿麻痹症之前，

we know that until it's eradicated,

polio remains a very real threat,

它仍然是一个非常真实的威胁，

特别是对世界上最贫穷社区的儿童。

especially to children in the poorest communities of the world.

It can reemerge in some of the most remote and dangerous places,

它能再次出现在一些 最偏远和危险的地方，

and from there, it can spread.

并从那里传播出去。

And so this is my new Ironman:

所以这是我的新铁人赛：

to end polio.

结束小儿麻痹症。

And I am reminded every day,

每当我看到两岁半的女儿玛雅时，

when I look at my two-and-a-half-year-old daughter Maya.

都会想起我自己。

She is able to climb a ladder in the park,

她能在公园里爬梯子，

push her scooter or kick a ball across the grass.

推着她的踏板车或在草地上踢球。

Almost everything that I see her do at her age

我看到她在这个年龄 做的几乎每件事，

都让我想起那个年龄的我 无法做到的事。

reminds me of what I could not do at that age.

And when she was two months old,

当她两个月大的时候，

I took her to get her first polio vaccine.

我带她去第一次接种脊髓灰质炎疫苗。

And when the doctor came in the room to prepare the shot,

当医生走进房间准备打针时，

I asked him if I could take a picture to document the moment.

我问他我是否可以拍张照片 来记录这一刻。

When we left the room,

当我们离开房间时，

I could feel my eyes welling up with tears.

我能感觉泪水已经模糊了双眼。

I cried the entire way home.

我在回家的路上不停流泪。

It was in that moment that I realized

就在那一刻，我意识到

that my daughter's life would be very different from mine.

我女儿的生活将与我截然不同。

She will never be faced with the crippling disability of polio,

她将永远不会面对小儿麻痹症 带来的瘫痪残疾，

because a vaccine was available, and I chose to get her immunized.

因为有疫苗，我选择给她接种疫苗。

She can do anything she wants,

她可以做任何她想做的事，

as can each of you.

像你们大家一样。

(Laughter)

(笑声)

Now I'd like to leave you all with one question:

现在我给大家留下一个问题：

what is your Ironman?

你的铁人三项是什么？

Thank you.

谢谢。

(Applause)

(掌声)