subject: Does A Medical Future Await This Charming Olympian? [print this page] Does A Medical Future Await This Charming Olympian?
This small town saw the arrival of this young girl back in 1984, and she brimmed with great dreams of becoming a runner that will compete in the Olympics one day. In just the span of four years, her amazing greenish brown eyes have already seen a lot. In 1988, she finished sixth in the 3,000 meter run in the Olympics in Seoul, Korea. Just last December, this world class runner finally finished high school. She may only be 23, but she is already perceived as the princess of American middle distance running and this paved the way for a prestigious three year endorsement contract for her with a famous shoe manufacturer.
But then this young Delaware native decided to stay right where she is for now. She uses her regular workouts to see the environs of her school. As this 5 foot 6, 110 pound athlete flies to her own finish line, it's as if her two feet barely touch the path she runs on. People seek her autograph wherever she goes, but fame makes her fidgety. She gets bothered with special treatment for she is a humble lady who believes that she is just another average person.
Though she can come off as normal, she certainly is far from average. She was the first girl hailing from her town that got the chance to be an Olympian. She's an important part of seven world record relay groups as well as a proud holder of four prestigious American collegiate awards. At school, she led her team, capturing eight individual NCAA championship titles and 14 Big East championship titles. She has achieved honors even in major awards.
Now that she's beyond collegiate competition, she and the track coach of her school are meticulously drawing out her sports career. She realizes that tons of mental adjustments have to be made with this huge change. Only people who have gone through such experiences can truly grasp this. She feels a lot of pressure to be a successful runner, but much of the pressure she puts on herself. She worries about getting injured while under contract for this famous shoe manufacturer. Thanks to people's great expectations of her, she's become more uneasy than she was in the past collegiate games she competed in.
Now that she's gone, a lot of people ask what will happen to the local women's track team now. She guarantees that they can for their one great team. The notoriety, the pressures, and responsibilities make her value her privacy. There were also some adjustments in their family for her parents and siblings had to deal with being known as her kin. She describes her parents as the perfect combination of supportive and laid back, not pushy.
You would be surprised and envious of the company she keeps, thanks to her stardom. Her friends are just the most successful and well known athletes that we can only see on the television. She name drops, yes, albeit not pretentiously for she has nothing but true affection and respect for these people who share this common link with her. This would be an example when asked when the last time that she was together with the runner she was with during a Hawaiian tour, she shared that the last she saw him was during the Olympic Games. She recalls that they had so much fun during those three days where they also talked about the old times.
She admits she has more time on her hands than she'd like, but she has not run out of things to do. Beyond her daily practices, she also finds herself busy as a public icon, getting involved in various track meets, banquets, photo sessions, features and other similar activities. On top of it all, this generous lady will share her time and abilities by being a volunteer assistant coach at their local school.
In keeping up with the medical aspiration she has put on hold, she also aims to volunteer on one of the area hospitals. That can truly aid this former psychology and premed major make a wise decision on whether to continue with medicine or not when it's her time to bow off the professional running course. When she was questioned on how she sees herself in the future, she shares that while she aims to have her own happy family that will have to wait until her career as a runner is already established. But as of the moment, she only wants to do what she wants and reach all her dreams.
