Accepting Yourself and Inspiring Others

Hello, Coca‑Cola FC Academy.

My name is Loretta Claiborne,

I am the Chief Inspirational Officer for Special Olympics.

Part of my job is to serve on their board as a representative, as an athlete,

to make sure that our voices are heard.

And before Special Olympics, life was not great for me or anyone like me who has intellectual disability, we would normally say ID.

As a very young child, I wasn't accepted in the regular circle.

And I loved sport, so I would start running around the project.

It wasn't easy, it was hard work.

And as time went by, I decided I was gonna run a marathon.

When everyone told, "Oh, people like, you can't run that far, you're gonna get hurt."

And of course, guess what?

I ran in my first marathon

in Harrisburg in 1978.

Years later, I had 26 marathons in.

In 1996, I received the Arthur Ashe Award.

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I now travel all over the world,

I met six presidents here in the United States, I was persistent.

Whether I got hurt or not, I picked myself back up.

It takes persistence.

I'll tell people in a heartbeat, "Well, this is me, this is all you get."

And I'm okay with me, and when I'm okay with myself, I can be true to myself.

It's okay to be you,

 'cause if you don't accept who you are, then nobody else is gonna accept you.

A coach years ago used to tell us,

"Together, everyone achieves more.

If we're all working together and we're all playing soccer, everyone has a job."

In life, it's the same way, you gotta work together.

T-E-A-M,

together, everyone achieves more.

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They say practice makes perfect,

I always say practice makes you better, but you can be your own leader.

And I remember, there were times in my life where I thought I would never lead.

Leadership comes from those who have experienced challenges and rises above.

And the more you practice, the better you'll be.

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Your true self is not defined by others' limits.

I define who I am, not my disability.

A lot of people think being brave is, "I'm strong."

But being brave is, "When I fall down, I have to be brave to get back up to face the challenge."

It's okay to be you,

Just be you and be true to you, and you can be your best.

Show me what you can do,

and I bet you can do more than what you think you do.