Kerri Strug
by Jaiden from San Diego
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Kerri Strug once said, "My entire adolescence was geared toward one thing: gymnastics" (BrainyQuote). Kerri Strug was an Olympic all around competitor gymnast in 1992 and 1996, competing for the US. She lived in Tucson, Arizona with her two other athletic siblings. She is known for many accomplishments and amazing actions throughout her life. Kerri Strug is a hero because she is brave, has strength, and she inspires others.Kerri Strug portrays bravery in many ways throughout her life and her gymnastics career. She gave up so much in her life, things such as her family, friends, and lifestyle at the age of 13. To move away from home to train for gymnastics was a hard decision to make. "Strug moved to Houston and lived with a family near Karolyi's gym. Her parents visited her every couple of weeks to keep her from becoming too lonely" (Sports Stars). Strug moved 1,128 miles away from home without her family to train for the 1992 and 1996 Olympics. She stayed with a family in Houston, but it was very different than the one in Arizona where her parents and siblings lived. When the time came for Strug to compete in those games, she was dedicated, persistent, and ready to bring her team to victory. But, on the USA team's last event, vault, they were in the lead and Kerri was last up to compete. On her first vault, she rolled her ankle and tore two ligaments. But for her team to win, she needed to go again. "She sprinted down the runway, executed a clean vault, and landed solidly on both of her feet, the grimace on her face revealing the obvious pain that she was feeling standing on her injured ankle. After the few seconds necessary to stick her vault and give the customary acknowledgement to the judges, Strug collapsed to the mat and cried for help" (Net Industries). Kerri could have easily given up and not vaulted. But she was brave and took the risk of injuring her foot even more than she already had. Unfortunately, Strug injured her foot to the point where she couldn't move on to the individual finals and her gymnastics career was over. But in the end, Kerri Strug didn't have to do any of these courageous things, but she was brave and took the risk.
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She also portrays strength for her ability to make hard decisions and never gives up on them. The audience could clearly see that something was wrong with Strug. "I could see she was hurt, and as a parent, I'd have said, 'Don't do the vault'" Melanie Strug told Sports Illustrated. "But knowing Kerri, you couldn't have stopped her unless you'd dragged her off" (Sports Illustrated). Kerri's mom, Melanie Strug, knew that her daughter had the strength to do anything and never give up after she came this far. And Kerri wasn't going to give up even though she injured her foot. Kerri Strug had two clear choices, vault or dont vault, and there were clear consequences, but she chose what she thought was right. "The injury tore the medial and lateral ligaments, and Strug had to make the decision as to whether she would make the final vault" (Gale, Biography in Context). Strug is a team player. She was in a great amount of pain but dug deep down to find the strength to do another vault. When she landed that second vault, the crowd went crazy and cheered for her amazing performance. Many people give up when something goes wrong. Kerri finished what she came for, to win.
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Kerri Strug is an inspiration to many people around the world. She shows many characteristics people see in a hero. "Gymnastics is a fleeting ambition, but the qualities Kerri displayed on July, 23, 1996, will stick with her the rest of her life"(Kevin and Karren Strug). Kerri shows virtuosity, sacrifice, courage, perseverance, and loyalty, and everyone who saw that last vault will remember these forever. Many athletes come across injuries and problems throughout their career. But it's their choice to figure out what to do about them. Even her teammates recognize how inspirational she was. "'When she nailed that second vault, I had tears of overwhelming joy because it was such a courageous thing to do,' Retton told People Weekly. 'It was one of the most heroic acts in the Olympics I've ever seen'" (Sports Stars). When Strug made the decision to vault, all eyes in the stadium went to her, including a former Olympic all around gold medalist, Mari Lou Retton. Everyone was so surprised Kerri was going back to take a second vault and they were so inspired that she made that decision.
Kerri Strug shows bravery for all the choices she made that changed her life, having strength for pushing through having an injured foot, and shows inspiration for all her actions throughout her career. Showing these three characteristics, Kerri is a hero toward any athlete, teammate, friend, parent, or teacher and should be recognized for her courageous story.
Works Cited
"Kerri Strug." Contemporary Authors Online. Detroit: Gale, 2005. Biography in Context. Web.
29 Apr. 2016.
"Kerri Strug." Sports Stars. Gale, 1997. Biography in Context. Web. 4 May 2016.
"Kerri Strug - The Historic Vault." - Team, Medal, American, and Ankle. Net Industries, 2016.
Web. 05 May 2016. http://sports.jrank.org/pages/4676/Strug-Kerri-Historic-Vault.html
"Kerri Strug Quotes." BrainyQuote. Xplore, n.d. Web. 13 May 2016.
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/k/kerri_strug.html
Strug, Kevin and Karen. "The Wink of an Eye." Page Title. N.p., 2010. Web. 29 Apr. 2016.
http://www.strug.org/alternate6.htm
Page created on 7/19/2016 12:00:00 AM
Last edited 7/19/2016 12:00:00 AM
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