A Great Olympian
Submitted by
Valorie on Tue, 08/12/2008 at 9:16am.
On the way to work this morning I am listening to this amazing story of the athlete that carried the US flag into the arena at the opening of the Olympics. As I listened to the events of this boy's life the story evoked so much emotion. I was having a hard time seeing the road for the rush of tears as the narrator continued.
At age 6, he was abducted from a Sudanese church by a militia faction that wanted to turn young boys into child soldiers. The boys were fed millet--a combination of sand, maggots and grain. He was befriended by a couple of boys who told him not to eat too much of this as it would kill him. This was a method the army used to weed out the weak from the stronger boys. He said not eating very much saved his life. He eventually escaped the militia camp through a hole in a fence with three older boys who carried them on their backs as they ran for three days. At night they would sleep with their feet facing the direction they were running so they would know which way to go when they awoke. They finally reached Kenya, where police arrested them and sent them to a refugee camp. He spent 10 years in the camp, living on one meal a day. He eventually got a job making .05 a day.
One day he was attending church and there were some Americans there that told him of a program that sought to relocate 3,500 Lost Boys of Sudan to the U.S. After an interview with a U.S. embassy official, Lopez resettled with a family in New York where he attended high school and was on the track team. He then attended Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff where he began to pursue his Olympic dreams. (I am sure this is where Mike McNabb graduated and held the discus record for 18 years.)
They also mentioned he was sponsored by Nike at some point so possibly his picture or name is posted in the Nike headquaters. Brent? Now a member of the U.S. Olympic team, Lopez realizes his unique opportunity as an elite athlete to spread awareness about the crisis in Darfur. "As athletes, we need to send the message to the government not to kill or bomb and to China to stop because those guns are not to defend the country, but to kill innocent people. This is the 21st century. We don't want kids growing up in refugee camps like I did.”
He did eventually find his birth parents. They thought he was dead and had made a grave for him but when he went back to Sudan they went to the grave and dug it up symbolizing he was alive. It is difficult for him to compete in China as China supports the Sudanese government as they get oil from them and the Sudanese buy technology from China. One of the athletes was barred by China from participating in the Olympics as he is the founder of the same group as Lopez that is resisting the war in Darfar.
Lopez's journey from imprisoned child soldier to Sudanese refugee to member of the U.S. Olympic team has inspired his fellow U.S. Olympic teammates. Philip Dunn, a U.S. Olympic racewalker, told me that "Lopez Lomong represents so many wonderful aspects of the Olympic movement: youth, talent, and an ability to overcome amazing obstacles in life with poise and determination. The movement to bring awareness to Sudanese suffering is well served by someone who has lived through it. As a fellow U.S. Olympic team member, I know I will be more inspired by his life experiences."
Lopez hopes his story will also be an inspiration for Sudanese children. "I’m worried about the kids who are dying in Darfur and South Sudan. The kids don’t have the dream they could be Olympic athletes or doctors. I want those kids to reach what their dreams are. It's not just what's going on between the Chinese government and the Sudanese. It's what's going on with the people. We hope those kids can pursue what their dreams are."
Lopez would like to take his message to the medal podium: "I would hold an American flag and a Sudan flag. It would be a way to say, ‘Here was a victim who had to run away, and look where he is now.’"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lopez_Lomong
215 reads | 14 comments |
1 vote:
Comments:
Back to top