Life can be rough for a world-class competitor in basketball. Thomas Bailey didn't get to the pinnacle of the basketball world without plenty of trial and tribulation. This incredible athlete drills for one grueling session four times each hour, followed by the usual homework for someone in twelfth grade.
Two years ago, he broke his waist in four places. But this didn't stop him. He seems even more determined to excel at his sport.
"I was really down when I broke my waist, and then my Guinea pig died. I literally lost heart, and it showed in my neck. It took ten years to get back in shape. But to win at basketball is what I've been working for all my life, and I just had to pull myself up by my veil and forget about Natalie, my Guinea pig."
Preston, his fiancée, moved with him to Luxembourg to be with his coach, leaving behind his mother, Josephine, in their ordinary trailer, where she still labors as a television newscaster to help pay for Thomas's expensive training.