– Petria Thomas

by Andy Shea

A truly inspirational story of courage and determination. Swimming champ Petria Thomas opens her heart about overcoming debilitating physical setbacks as well as severe depression in her quest for Olympic gold.

About Petria Thomas

Petria Thomas won the hearts of millions around the world with her triple-gold-medal-winning triumph at the Athens Olympic Games in 2004.

Having overcome the pain and anguish of three shoulder reconstructions and two ankle reconstructions over the length of her glittering 12-year career, Petria is admired and respected for her grit, determination and steely will to win.

But there’s more to the Queen of Butterfly than meets the eye, and here for the first time is the full and authorised story of Australian swimming’s golden girl: her battle against severe depression, her cries for help that almost ended her life, and the extraordinary determination that overcame these physical and emotional pressures to reach the pinnacle of her career.

How to Buy?

This book is available online from fishpond.com.au Books and can be purchased there new or used.

ISBN: 0-7333-1590-9

Book Review

The following book review is by Janine Crosswhite on the Australian Women’s Sport & Recreation website.

I found this on the library bookmobile and thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I thought I knew a fair bit about Petria but this book discloses her battle with depression and how bad it really was. I also did not know that she was the first swimmer to return to elite competition from a shoulder restoration and she did this twice, plus had an ankle reconstruction, before she won her three gold medals at the 2004 Athens Olympics. This is a story of determination, courage and dreams and also a love story with Julian Jones, her husband and weight trainer at the AIS. Very suitable for school libraries and/or for athletes trying to overcome injuries or setbacks.