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Mia Hamm

by Danielle from Nova Scotia, Canada

She has great athletic ability on the field and sportsmanship, determination and commitment off it.

Mia Hamm was born on March 17,1972 in Selma, Ala. When she was 8 years old, her parents adopted her new brother Garrett. She then had 6 children in her family and she was the fourth oldest. Mia Hamm was always traveling and moving around the world because her dad was in the military. She now lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Hamm's brother, Garrett died in 1997 from a rare bone marrow disease. Hamm was upset and in pain when he died because she looked up to him and he was one of her heroes.


Mia Hamm is very strong. She has both mental and physical strength. On May 3rd, 1996, her family and she left Mexico because they were looking for a cure for her younger brother Raul, who had been diagnosed with Leukemia. She was only 10 years old and she had to help her family look for a cure for her sick brother. She was there for her brother through all the rough times that he had to go through and she ended up learning alot from Raul. She also made a foundation called the Mia Hamm foundation for Marrow awareness.

Mia Hamm is a leader on and off the soccer field. Mia is widely recognized as the world's best all-around women's soccer player. In Atlanta at the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games she proved it by leading her team to the top. In college she also lead her team to four championships. The Games she more light on female athletes and sports teams than ever before. Mia became one of the game's true examples for people of all ages who have a dream or goal. Women’s soccer is in the spotlight now all around the world thanks to Mia's tremendous impact, both on and off the field. She is a great help to her team and the female soccer players who look up to her and have a dream to be like her.

Throughout Mia Hamm's life she was very determined in everything she did. While playing for UNC and leading her team to four successive NCAA championships, she received the nickname "Jordan" (after Michael Jordan) because of her athletic ability on the field and sportsmanship, determination and commitment off it. She uses a lot of her free time by giving to charity. She tries her hardest to keep women’s sports out there and recognized. She also encourages young girls and guys to have a good attitude toward themselves and soccer. Mia was the youngest player ever to play for the National Team at the age of 15 and she has played national soccer ever since. Her records in appearances and goals, MVP awards and overall performance make her one of the top people in soccer history. She has also been US Soccer's Female Athlete of the year for five years in a row.

Mia Hamm (http://www.myhero.com/myhero/hero.asp?hero=m_hamm)
Mia Hamm (http://www.myhero.com/myhero/hero.asp?hero=m_hamm)

Mia Hamm won a lot of awards for soccer and for her foundation and she continues to make great progress as she grows older and more experienced. She accomplished a lot and she is still young and has many more years ahead of her. Her goals are to encourage girls to play soccer and to keep raising money for the Mia Hamm Foundation.

Page created on 1/9/2006 12:00:00 AM

Last edited 1/9/2006 12:00:00 AM

The beliefs, viewpoints and opinions expressed in this hero submission on the website are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs, viewpoints and opinions of The MY HERO Project and its staff.

Related Links

Mia Hamm biography - a biography
mia hamm foundation - her background and about the mia hamm foundation and the awards she won and about her brothers sickness