Franklin made superstardom look effortless, even as she raced in a 200-meter freestyle and a 100-meter backstroke 14 minutes apart at the London Olympics. While shopping with her father, she bumped into the parent of a young woman she used to race against. She stopped to say hello and the man told Franklin that everyone was rooting for her. Knowing that she had slowed down a bit, he added that they were all praying that she would return to form in time for the 2016 Olympics. Franklin remembered thinking, “Was that meant to be a compliment?”She laughed, but at that moment the price of being America’s chlorine queen seemed exorbitant.

Source: New York Times December 20, 2018 00:22 UTC