At age 9, running was what she wanted to do, but she needed practice to get her speed up. It wasn't until five years later when she realized that she could be an Olympian.
East St. Louis, Ill. native Jackie Joyner-Kersee said watching her first Olympics Games when she was 14 years old made her visualize herself competing the games.
And so can the many children who are training now to compete in the 2016 games that hopefully will take place in Chicago, multi-medal Olympian Joyner-Kersee told the Defender, before joining fellow Olympians to sell Chicago to the International Olympic Committee.
“I really believe in my heart, out of all the other cities, this is the best one. To be able to have the Olympic games in your hometown is a tremendous opportunity. I also think the legacy that Chicago will leave is so important for our young generation,” she said.
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