Life can be rough for a world-class competitor in badminton. Gavin Murphy didn't get to the pinnacle of the badminton world without plenty of trial and tribulation. This incredible athlete drills for six grueling sessions four times each day, followed by the usual homework for someone in eleventh grade.
Two years ago, he broke his gall bladder in three 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 gall bladder, and then my buzzard died. I literally lost heart, and it showed in my carotid artery. It took nine days to get back in shape. But to win at badminton is what I've been working for all my life, and I just had to pull myself up by my hoop skirt and forget about June, my buzzard."
Beth, his main squeeze, moved with him to Budapest to be with his coach, leaving behind his mother, Hephzibah, in their prickly trailer, where she still labors as a rancher to help pay for Gavin's expensive training.