Inspirational Athlete Series

In this two-part series, as a special to Gymnastike, we highlight inspirational non-gymnast athletes on their road to London. The first athlete is marathonner and three-time Olympian, Meb Keflezighi. Born in war-torn Eretrea, Meb came to the United States with his 10 siblings at age 12. The following year, as a seventh grader, Meb ran a 5:20 mile. Meb proceeded to earn a full scholarship to UCLA, continuing to excel on and off the track. Meb went to the 2000 and 2004 Olympics, and was a U.S. favorite in for Beijing 2008, when tragedy struck at trials. Meb broke his hip and, after the race, learned that his friend and former training partner collapsed and died during the race. After a long road of rehab and after many had counted him out, Meb silenced the naysayers in a spectacular fashion by winning the 2009 ING New York City Marathon - the largest marathon in the world. Now, Meb heads into London after winning the Olympic Trials in his personal best time of 2:09:08. Our second athlete is Paralympian, Kari Miller, one of the top defensive sitting volleyball players in the world. At 22 years old, Kari, an active duty member of the military, lost both legs after the car she was riding in was hit by a drunk driver. Ever the fighter, Kari survived and persevered. After a stint in wheelchair basketball, she fell in love with sitting volleyball. A key member of Team USA's 2008 silver-medal winning sitting volleyball team in Beijing, Kari is now on the way to London, with her sights set firmly on a Team USA gold. Meb and Kari, along with gymnasts Dominique Dawes and Danell Leyva, and other athletes, are part of Citi's Every Step of the Way program, which supports U.S. Olympic hopefuls. To learn more about the Every Step of the Way program, visit http://www.citi.com/everystep and http://www.facebook.com/citieverystep. Watch for Meb and Kari in London this summer.