Jessica Long, from Baltimore, Maryland, USA is a champion by all definitions of the word. She is one of the world's most decorated1. Jessica was the youngest athlete, at 12 years old，lo win a Paralympics（残奥会）medal.
Jessica was born in Irkutsk, Russia with a severe and rare birth defect-fibular hemimelia. This means that part of her2bones was missing or deformed. Fearing she could not3Jessica，her young mother placed her in a Russian orphanage（孤儿院）. Fortunately，she was4by an American family when she was 13 months old. She required 25 differen5to help her leg condition. But unfortunately, both of her legs had to be6when she was just 18 months old.
Jessica learned to walk with7legs. As a child, she took up8including gymnastics, cheerleading, ice skating, biking, and rock climbing. Jessica began swimming at her grandparents' house. she was9about swimming, never once allowing her disability to10her back. "I always loved pretending I was a11or a mermaid while swimming. " she once said. She really excelled at swimming. Shortly after she started competing, Jessica was12as Maryland's Female Swimmer of the Year with a Disability. Even though Long was13with her physical limitations, she was encouraged to enter her first Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece. She won three gold medals in swimming at the age of 12! But she did not14on her success. Jessica has gone on to win 23 medals for Team USA at the Paralympics! While she began her15out of anger and frustration, she is now a positive16on a mission to inspire the next generation of Paralympians!
Jessica believes her condition is an opportunity rather than a17. Having a disability doesn't mean her life is not18. Jessica always believe she can do anything. She always gives 110%. And she never allowed herself to19. As she says, "The only disability in life is a20attitude".
