Why Michael Phelps is the American Comeback Story

Just in time for Independence Day, Michael Phelps earned a place in sports history this week as the first U.S. men’s swimmer to qualify for five Olympic Games.

It’s a phenomenal achievement by any stretch of the imagination.

And it’s made even more impressive because just two years ago, Phelps was earning headlines for other reasons: smoking pot, getting a DUI, losing sponsors, and heading to rehab.

In the run-up to Independence Day, it’s practically a national pastime to consider and celebrate the American character. Of the many qualities that define our nation, Phelps’s story highlights one that is particularly resonant: a kind of redemptive perseverance. It’s the notion that we can overcome any odds, any troubles, any human frailty through sheer strength of will.

More than any other nation, I’m convinced the American ethos is, in part, centered on deifying the comeback. We may watch with avidity as our heroes prove they’re all too mortal - but we’re savage believers that out of a fall from grace, they can rise again. Collectively, we root for the underdog; as a nation, we see the value of humility, of sweat, of tears and blood, of laboring to our feet after falling to our knees. It’s Rocky. It’s Miracle on Ice. It’s The Boys in the Boat. It’s the Sox versus the Yankees in the 2004 American League championship. It’s General McAuliffe’s famous, one-word reply to a German surrender ultimatum (“Nuts!”).

This quality - this is why America is truly a nation of makers. Our faith in our ability to make our own destiny is virtually unshakeable. We are relatively untroubled by failure. Indeed, that’s the quality that makes America such fertile ground for entrepreneurs. In other countries, a failed business is cause for deep shame and regret. In Silicon Valley, someone who hasn’t started or worked for a failed venture or two is a person who just graduated from college. The most common reaction to hearing about a defunct start-up is a nonchalant, “Cool. What’s next for you?”

It’s because we're convinced our setbacks are really setups - for that next, more successful chapter, whatever it might be.

It’s what Phelps showed us Wednesday night - and it’s what happens on a less-visible scale all across America, every day.