Eric Shanteau | Inspirational 2012 Gold Medal Olympian and Cancer Survivor

Eric Shanteau

Inspirational 2012 Gold Medal Olympian and Cancer Survivor

Eric Shanteau
Biography

A role model to audiences young and old, Olympic swimmer Eric Shanteau has shown the world that no matter the setbacks, there is always the choice to move forward and accomplish your dreams. He captured the hearts of audiences world-wide as he overcame his father's death and his own battle with testicular cancer to later go on to achieve Olympic success in the pool. In 2008, despite his recent diagnosis with testicular cancer, Eric decided to continue in the pursuit of his life-long dream to compete in the Olympic Games. He consulted several doctors, and after a series of medical tests, Eric was cleared to swim at the Olympic Trials one week prior. He traveled to Omaha under the assumption that even if he made the team, he may never see Beijing. In a bittersweet victory, Shanteau qualified for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team in the 200m breaststroke. After another torturous round of testing and weighing his options, he chose to continue on with his dream and bravely competed in the 2008 Olympic Games. Through it all, the one thing that was not difficult for Eric was his decision to go public with his illness. The tremendous amount of support he received from his friends, family, fans and other cancer survivors gave him the courage he needed to fight both for his health and for his Olympic dream. He also learned how rewarding sharing your own struggles and motivating others in similar situations can be. Eric is now three years cancer-free and is an avid spokesperson for cancer awareness. As an Olympic athlete, cancer survivor, role model, and spokesperson for testicular cancer, as well as Lance Armstrong's Livestrong cancer advocacy group, he has fought hard to beat the odds, increase awareness and encourage others. Eric remains an inspiration to audiences nationally and internationally. Eric recently competed in the 2012 London Olympic Games, receiving a gold medal in the 4X100 meter medley relay. Throughout the Games, Eric tweeted how lucky he was to be in London. With this tweet: "Four years ago I left Beijing to fight cancer, now I am leaving London to celebrate this: [Picture of Gold medal]," he received the "Favorite Tweet of the 2012 Olympic Games" honor from NBC Sports

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Bring your Goals to Life
Achieving the Top 1%

Eric Shanteau set a goal of becoming an Olympic swimmer at the age of 10. After narrowly missing the 2004 games, he qualified in 2008, only to discover he had cancer, and delayed his treatment in order to compete. He achieved his dream by winning a gold medal at the 2012 games as part of the medley relay team. Ranked in the top 1% of swimmers in the world from 2008 to 2012, Shanteau explains how to deal with change, what do when things are out of your control and how to persevere no matter what the odds. Shanteau challenges audiences to reach for their dreams not just by setting goals, but by making a plan to achieve those goals. He explains how learning to fail helps to achieve ultimate success and that visualization is an important process along the road to achieving the future you want.

Keeping My Head Above Water
Resilience in the Face of Adversity

Eric Shanteau's cancer diagnosis was one of the biggest stories of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Shanteau takes his audience on a journey from the harsh reality of a cancer diagnosis to winning an Olympic gold medal. The ability to persevere under any circumstance is a quality Shanteau has had the opportunity to test time and again. In this presentation he demonstrates the power of a positive mindset and the importance of a never-quit attitude as key factors in his ability to always find the silver lining.

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Eric Shanteau

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