Publisher's Synopsis
From a young age, Lorenzo became an addict - not of any conventional illegal substance, but of the one thing he knew he could achieve if he pushed himself long enough and hard enough. His "drug of choice" was success. For him, winning gave him the fix he craved. At times when tiredness would overcome him, his father's words would drive him on: "I win, therefore I exist".
Alone in his room, Lorenzo blows out the 50 candles on his birthday cake and begins to reflect on his past. Despite his success as an Italian swimming champion, he is unfulfilled and unhappy with the shallowness of his life. He has lost touch with all of his friends but had never really been able to connect with them on an intimate level.
He remembers how it all began, how his life was shaped by the proximity to his home of an Olympic-sized swimming pool. It was there he met his coach, Sandro Romagnoli, aka The Master, who recognized his talent and passion for swimming even before he did so himself. He nurtured Lorenzo to achieve success in the Italian championships, but Lorenzo wanted more: the pinnacle of swimming success - a gold medal at the Summer Olympics.
Lorenzo realizes a growing sense that his father's ambitions have been passed down to him, and throughout his teenage years, he is driven to training harder and longer than anyone else would possibly dare to push themselves.
The novel explores the themes of loyalty to one person and alienation of another and how the need to win could tempt someone to achieve success in shocking and self-destructive ways.
