Carina loved running, and she loved winning too. She was the captain and star athlete of her track and field team. Although Carina wasn’t an excellent runner when she first joined the team two years earlier, she practiced all the time and soon began to win almost every race in which she competed. Carina was doing so well that she thought she might become the winningest track and field athlete in her school’s history! 2One afternoon at track practice, Coach Winder nabbed everyone’s attention to introduce a new athlete. “This is Roberto," he said. "He just transferred to our school from Greensboro Middle School. Please welcome Roberto to the team!”

3The members of the team clapped and jostled each other as they tried to shake Roberto’s hand. As the team captain, Carina shook Roberto’s hand first. She introduced herself and told Roberto that she was excited to have another team member. Roberto told Carina that he had been reluctant about joining the team, but Carina assured him that he would have a marvelous time.

4The next day, the members of the track team stretched before running some sprints. Carina told Roberto that he could race with her. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I’ll go easy on you because it’s your first practice.”

5Carina and Roberto lined up at the starting blocks. When they heard the CRACK of the starting pistol, Roberto and Carina started. After a short distance, Carina realized that Roberto was no longer beside her. She turned to see how far behind he had fallen, but to her amazement, Roberto was not behind her. She looked up and saw Roberto surging ahead. His feet moved as fast as lightning! When Carina realized that she was about to lose, she ran as vigorously as she could; however, it wasn’t enough. Roberto triumphed. Carina seemed almost paralyzed with shock, but she managed to smile and congratulate him.

6Over the next few weeks, Roberto became a phenomenon on the track. No matter how hard Carina trained, she could never beat Roberto.

7One evening after a track meet, Carina was desolate. Roberto had won first place, and Carina had come in third! She considered hanging up her running shoes and quitting the team. Just as she was about to call Coach Winder, her father entered the living room. Carina explained her situation to him.

8“If winning is so important to you that you can’t merely have fun being a member of the team,” said Carina’s father, “then I guess quitting is your only option. But, before you make your decision, think about why you originally joined the team.”

9The next day, Carina walked into Coach Winder’s office and handed him a slip of paper. Coach Winder’s eyes widened as he read it. Then, he closed the note and shook his head approvingly.

11“That’s right,” Carina said with a smile, “I’d like Roberto to serve as co-captain of the team.”

What is a THEME for this story?

A) Having fun is more important than winning.

B) When someone does better than you, practice more so you can beat them.

C) Never settle for second place.

D) If someone is better than you at something, you should just quit.