I don't find the world's best athletes inspiring, precisely because they often benefit from quirks of their physiology that I don't share or training that dates back to their single-digit years, or both.

I do find athletes in technical sports like sailing, rock climbing, extreme-depth diving inspiring because those sports require a combination of physical ability and problem solving. Sailing is particularly inspiring because even the least able sailor is able to leverage some of the most powerful forces on earth to their advantage. But even Dennis Conner can't sail directly into the wind.

Getting back to the original post, I do find it useful as an engineer to attempt impossible things from time to time. Often the impossible is just inside our heads. Sometimes our expectations for our self are too low. But sometimes our egos are too big and we benefit from failing at something impossible too.

There's some truth to Phelps' statement. But if you find yourself on an alien planet, don't take off your space suit and start petting the weird snake-creatures.