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In high school and college, I was an athlete.

I was a competitive swimmer in middle school and high school.

The ninth grade. I went from 5'9' to 6'8'.

Ever since I was a little kid, I was competitive.

I was in a special class, where you skip a grade - you go from seventh to ninth. But I got kicked out. You had to maintain an 85 average, and I didn't. I was too focused on trying to be popular.

All through the student years, I was at the top of my class although I was two years younger than everybody else.

I never finished the ninth grade.

As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.

At ten I was playing against 18-year-old guys. At 15 I was playing professional ball with the Birmingham Black Barons, so I really came very quickly in all sports.

I think I was 8 or 9 when I did my first play. It was at a community level, but that's when I knew that this is what I loved doing.