Courage
Nik learns that courage isn't the absence of fear or difficulty. It is continuing to move forward despite them.
Book 1
Champions, We Are
Choose Courage. Choose Friendship. Choose Not to Give Up.
What makes someone a champion?
- Is it winning?
- Is it being the strongest?
- Is it crossing the finish line first?
- Or is it something much bigger?
Champions, We Are follows Nik, a young boy who uses a wheelchair and dreams of racing on a red racing bike.
Nik's journey is not simply about reaching a finish line. It is about discovering what is possible when a person believes in a dream, and when family and friends come together to provide encouragement and support.
Alongside his best friend, Josh, a football player, Nik faces challenges that require patience, courage, teamwork, and understanding.
As Nik and his friends learn more about one another, they also begin to understand that people can experience the world in very different ways.
Their differences don't have to separate them. They can bring people closer.
A Story About More Than a Race
At the heart of Champions, We Are is the idea that courage doesn't always look the way we expect.
- Sometimes courage means trying again.
- Sometimes it means asking for help.
- Sometimes it means believing in a friend.
- And sometimes it means refusing to let other people's expectations determine what you can accomplish.
Nik's story encourages readers to look beyond physical limitations and discover the person, dreams, humor, determination, and potential behind them.
Themes
Friendship
Josh and Nik demonstrate how genuine friendship can provide encouragement, understanding, and strength.
Inclusion
The story encourages readers to recognize differences while building connections across them.
Perseverance
Dreams often require patience. Nik's journey reminds readers that progress can happen one step at a time.
Family and Community
When family and friends work together, challenges can become opportunities for growth and connection.
Believing in Yourself
Nik's story encourages young readers to recognize that their circumstances do not have to determine the size of their dreams.
Why This Story Matters
Children deserve stories in which they can recognize themselves, and stories that help them understand people whose experiences may be different from their own.
Champions, We Are provides an opportunity to talk about disability, friendship, courage, inclusion, and the importance of supporting one another.
It is a story for young readers, families, educators, coaches, and anyone who believes that every child deserves the opportunity to dream.
Book Details
- Title
- Champions, We Are
- Author
- Beth Watter
- Publication
- February 10, 2026
- Length
- 80 pages
- ISBN
- 9798900001609
- Genre
- Fiction / Friendship / Inspirational themes
- Publisher
- ReadersMagnet LLC
The Message
- You don't have to be the fastest.
- You don't have to be the strongest.
- You don't have to fit someone else's definition of success.
Sometimes being a champion simply means believing, persevering, and helping others along the way.
Champions are not only found at the finish line.
Continue the Journey
The Making of Champions takes readers to Ironwood Springs Sports Camp, where Nik and his friends discover that becoming a champion is about much more than winning.