Louis Zamperini

"A minute of pain is worth a lifetime of glory," once said Louis Zamperini. Louis Zamperini had been through a very eventful and challenging life. He faced many challenges which he fought through and which had shaped him into a strong person. He never gave up even when times got hard. He has been in the Olympics and was a member of the U.S Army. He was also a prisoner of Japan which was his hardest challenge. Through his time of being held prisoner he learned to never give up and fight for life.

Louis Zamperini running in High School (http://thetorrancetornado.com/ (The Zamperini Family))

Zamperini's early life shaped his future and although it wasn't pleasant, it helped him grow into a great person. Louis Zamperini was born on January 26, 1917 in Olean, New York. He and his family were Italian immigrants. He went to Torrence High School. As a kid he was a juvenile delinquent. He smoked at the age of five and became a drinker at the age of eight. He would steal from neighbors and fight other kids. He even deflated a teacher's car and threw tomatoes at a cop. Many people thought he would never amount to much in the future but that all changed when he went to high school. He decided to join the cross county team. This helped him get away from all of his problems and helped break him out of his mischievous ways. He ended up becoming a leading candidate to break the four minute barrier in the mile run. Zamperini set the National high school record in 1934 at 4 minutes and 21.2 seconds which stood for 20 years. He earned a scholarship to the University of Southern California for his track successes. This lead Zamperini to compete in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Germany. According to Martin Jacobs, "He got 8th place in the 5,000 meter race." He finished his last lap with a time of 56 seconds which caught the eyes of many people including Adolf Hitler. Zamperini's talent was astounding.

Louis was just beginning his road to success as a track star, but his thoughts changed after competing in Berlin. After Zamperini ran in the Olympics in Berlin, Germany, he realized that the militant fascism he witnessed there affected him quite personally. He soon was a drafted member of the U.S Army on September 29, 1940. On a mission to find a B-25 , his plane suffered a mechanical failure and crashed into the ocean. He and two other men were the only survivors out of the eleven men on board. The three were stranded on a raft and and ate birds and fish from the lack of no food on the raft. One of the men they was stranded with died at sea. "They spent 47 days stranded at sea" (Richard Green) until a Japanese harbor ship found them and took them in as prisoners.

After his struggling days at sea, Louis never gave up on life. His times at sea helped him realize how fast life can turn on you. Zamperini and his other crew member, Phillip, were confined to a detention building after they were found. Zamperini was used as a "guinea pig" by a Japanese doctor to test various substances. He was brutally beaten many times and when they found out he was an Olympic runner they broke his nose three times. Louis moved from camp to camp. During his time held captive, his parents had gotten the word that he was "dead" but after agreeing to being broadcasted to the United States in 1944, his parents were relieved to find out he was still alive. After the war was over, Zamperini and Phillip were released from the prison camp and brought back to the U.S. This was an emotional time for Zamperini, his family, and friends. All of the physical torture would be dismissed but the mental torture would still take time to heal.

Louis Zamperini (http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703514 (U.S Army))

Louis Zamperini is a great role model and hero. After being released from the prison camp, Louis Zamperini had a hard time battling with his mind. It made life back at home tough but to cope, Louis wrote two memoirs which helped him find himself once again and traveled back to Japan and "Reunited with his former captors after the war." (Richard Green). During his time stranded on a raft and being held prisoner, he has proven that you have to fight and do whatever you can to live no matter how hard it can be. He fought through many hardships in life which made him a stronger person. His struggles in life made him realize who he was and made him realize the importance in life: Giving up is not an option. His legacy will live on forever.