Mia Hamm

Mia Hamm (www.salon.com/.../06/23/mia_hamm/mia_hamm.jpg)

"The vision of a champion is bent over, drenched in sweat, at the point of exhaustion, when nobody else is looking.” This quote represents Mia Hamm, a hero to youth around the world. Mia made strides to do better than every person that she challenged. When the boys she would play with slept in until twelve o’clock, Mia would make sure she was up at eight o’clock, to practice on the high school soccer field. She worked on her passing, dribbling, shooting and footwork.

Mia Hamm had an unusual early life. On March 17, 1972 Mariel Margaret Hamm, otherwise know as Mia, was born in Selma, Alabama. Bill, her father, worked as an Air Force pilot. Stephanie, Mia’s mother, was a former ballerina. Mia had three sisters, two older and one younger. Mia also had two adopted brothers, Martin and Garrett. Religion was a big part of the Hamm family’s life. They belonged to a small African-American church. Bill wanted his family to experience life like the African-Americans did. Stephanie set a good example for Mia and her siblings by teaching ballet in the garage of her church. She also ran a home for unmarried mothers. When the Hamms moved to Italy, the biggest sport there was soccer. It was always on TV. Mia’s dad didn’t think much of soccer. The only thing he saw was tangled up feet and low scores. After Bill started watching soccer, he learned that the low scores were part of the game. He soon became very interested in soccer. When Mia was about two, the family went to the park. Mia spotted a man kicking a soccer ball with his son. She then ran up to the ball and started kicking it. For a long time she did moves around the boy. She had so much fun. When Mia was a child, she had a bad temper. She would always have tantrums and yell. The neighborhood kids called her the, “Military Brat.” Stephanie thought having Mia take ballet lessons would help her to take out all of her anger. WRONG! Mia hated ballet. It was too slow and the clothes were uncomfortable. Finally, when Mia was five years old, her parents got her involved in a peewee soccer league. It was the perfect match! Mia loved being part of a team. She scored many goals as well. Though Mia Hamm had an unusual early life, she grew up to become one of the greatest soccer players in the world.

Mia Hamm achieved several accomplishments in her life. First, Mia’s brother Garrett died of a bone-marrow disease. Mia then took the opportunity to start an organization called the “Garrett Game.” This fundraiser raised money for people with bone-marrow diseases. Some of the women from the U.S. national team played soccer with the participants of the fundraiser. Mia made this fundraiser in honor of Garrett. Another accomplishment that she achieved was creating the Mia Hamm Foundation. This foundation, helped raise money for two of Mia’s biggest priorities. Her priorities were women’s soccer, and people with bone-marrow diseases. She wanted to promote women’s soccer in the United States, so it would become more popular. When Mia Hamm was just fifteen, she played on the United States national team. Mia showed her great skill and speed. Even though Mia was the youngest and smallest player on the team, she still excelled. Mia Hamm had several accomplishments in her life. In the end, Mia’s confidence and skill helped her to attain these accomplishments.

Mia Hamm had many early life problems. Mia Hamm was born with a partial clubfoot. She had to wear casts for a while. No one ever thought she would be as great of an athlete as she is. When Mia’s casts came off, she never slowed down again. As a child, Mia moved to a lot of different places because her father Bill worked in the Air Force. When Mia moved to different places she also had to switch schools. Mia learned that playing sports helped her to make friends. When Mia Hamm played for the U.S. national team, she was in a scoring slump. Mia didn’t score any more. Interviewers joked that Mia, stood for Missing In Action. Eventually, Mia scored again and many more times and ended her slump. Mia Hamm had many early life problems. As Mia grew older, she overcame these problems to help her to be the person she is today.

In Mia Hamm’s life, she won many awards. Mia Hamm broke the record number of goals, male or female, in her professional career. She scored a total of 108 goals. It took Mia a lot of practice to get to that point. Mia Hamm was the top scorer of the Women’s National Team for five years in a row. Mia always was in the right place at the right time. Even though she was the top scorer, she never once bragged about it. When Mia was only thirteen years old, she was named the Texas all-star in women’s soccer. Mia Hamm’s effort and talent helped her to win these awards.

I think that Mia Hamm is an amazing person. These are three character traits about her. First, Mia is humble. Whenever the interviewers told Mia that she was a great soccer player, she always said that she wasn’t a good all-around player. Mia never wanted to be in the spotlight. Once, she told an interviewer that there is no me in Mia. Generosity is another trait that represents Mia Hamm. When Mia’s brother died, she was generous and created the “Garrett Game.” It is an organization that raises money for people with bone-marrow diseases. Mia Hamm also created the Mia Hamm foundation. This foundation raises money for both women’s soccer and bone-marrow diseases. A third trait that Mia Hamm has is perseverance. When her brother Garrett died, it was a tough time. But, Mia knew that she had to keep going for her team. She persevered for her team. These three character traits are just some of the many different traits that Mia Hamm has.

In conclusion, Mia Hamm is a heroine. An important lesson from Mia would be that even through the toughest times, or when you think you can’t do it anymore, push through and don’t give up. Otherwise, you’ll never succeed. If you want something really bad, you have to work hard for it and achieve your goals. “The goals and the championships are nice, but the emotions, the tears, and the smiles on my teammates’ faces are my championship.” -Mia Hamm-