I have been training all my life for this moment. Not many people keep on going after all the injuries, the pain and the tears. However I did. I made it to the 2028 Olympics in San Diego. I will be competing with the best, but after tonight I will be the best in Pole Vault. My turn is up,the ebullient crowd is cheering and waving the U.S. flag. I feel like my heart is about to burst out of my body. The bell goes"Bing!" and I salute to the let the judges know I am ready.
Shifting my feet back and forth, the adrenaline is taking over, I begin to run. My name is John Paul and I am from Detroit. I am fifteen years old, a straight a student, I lived in a terrible neighborhood where there were gangs and violence all the time, and sports aren't a big thing. I lived with my mom Shirley,a fragile Irish lady, who has gone through so many things. My father left us after my brother was murdered in a gang shooting. My mother was afarid that I was going to turn to drugs to cope with everything that has happened. So one day she went out of town to find a sports center for me to participate in. She found the I and C track and field center about fifty miles from the house. Without asking me for my opinion, she signed me for the Pole Vault team. I didn't even know what Pole Vaulting was!
I stick the pole in the ground. The next week my mom took me to the center where I was going to meet my coach. My coach was Lin,a funny looking Asian man,he was won five championship titles in his career. I though he was a cool dude but he is tougher than a lion trying to fight a predator! The next day I woke up at 5 am in the morning to go to practice. At practice I kept falling,falling and knocking the stand down. I felt like a loser especially with the other members glowering at me through the corner of their eyes. I went home that day with my gym bag as the "thugs" in the neighborhood , leaning and smoking,yell remarks at me like "Save your time boy,your never going to get out of this town." The next day I woke up with blisters on my hands the size of Jupiter.
Flying in the air, I know I have won. After three years of intense training, people denying me and winning a plethora of awards, I was ready to go higher in my training. I got my first scholarship offer to the University of North Carolina [UNC]. A year into college I made the top 10 in Pole Vaulting in the Unites States. I was sitting in my room studying for a major test and the phone rang. My mom was on the line and she was crying. My heart drop faster than a alka seltzer tablet dissolves in water. "You did it!' she cried. " Mom, what did I do! Is everything okay?" I whispered. That night I found out that I made to the Olympic Trials and I have made my dream come true.
I was so excited but nervous. I called my coach and he yelled" I couldn't keep it a secret anymore!" The next day was my birthday, I was turning 19. My friend Jake, a tall nerd,and I decided to go skateboarding. We were both drunk and stupid. I got on the skateboard and went down this new ramp,right when I was about to get off I fell and "Pop" went my ankle.
Thump! Went my feet on the mat. I have finished my routine.That night when I sprang my ankle was one of the scariest moments in my life. I didn't know if I could compete in the Olympic Trials. At the trials my ankle was throbbing but I ignored it. My name is called and I run, nail the pole in the ground,fly over the post and land on the mat. The next thing I remember is my mom attacking me and yelling" You did it!' and Coach Lin crying. I did it, I made the United States Pole Vaulting Olympic Team!
I get off the mat.The crowd is cheering,yelling my name. It was the happiest moments of my life.After the judges tallied the score, the announcer's voice came on and he announced my score, clear,crisp and loud. I stood there,frozen like a popsicle in a freezer. I was 0.01 points away from being on the podium.However I was not upset. Growing up in the projects and having people deny my efforts, I believe I have made it far enough, To be honest I will keep on trying and training. The games will see me in the next four years, on the podium with a medal around my neck.
Shifting my feet back and forth, the adrenaline is taking over, I begin to run. My name is John Paul and I am from Detroit. I am fifteen years old, a straight a student, I lived in a terrible neighborhood where there were gangs and violence all the time, and sports aren't a big thing. I lived with my mom Shirley,a fragile Irish lady, who has gone through so many things. My father left us after my brother was murdered in a gang shooting. My mother was afarid that I was going to turn to drugs to cope with everything that has happened. So one day she went out of town to find a sports center for me to participate in. She found the I and C track and field center about fifty miles from the house. Without asking me for my opinion, she signed me for the Pole Vault team. I didn't even know what Pole Vaulting was!
I stick the pole in the ground. The next week my mom took me to the center where I was going to meet my coach. My coach was Lin,a funny looking Asian man,he was won five championship titles in his career. I though he was a cool dude but he is tougher than a lion trying to fight a predator! The next day I woke up at 5 am in the morning to go to practice. At practice I kept falling,falling and knocking the stand down. I felt like a loser especially with the other members glowering at me through the corner of their eyes. I went home that day with my gym bag as the "thugs" in the neighborhood , leaning and smoking,yell remarks at me like "Save your time boy,your never going to get out of this town." The next day I woke up with blisters on my hands the size of Jupiter.
Flying in the air, I know I have won. After three years of intense training, people denying me and winning a plethora of awards, I was ready to go higher in my training. I got my first scholarship offer to the University of North Carolina [UNC]. A year into college I made the top 10 in Pole Vaulting in the Unites States. I was sitting in my room studying for a major test and the phone rang. My mom was on the line and she was crying. My heart drop faster than a alka seltzer tablet dissolves in water. "You did it!' she cried. " Mom, what did I do! Is everything okay?" I whispered. That night I found out that I made to the Olympic Trials and I have made my dream come true.
I was so excited but nervous. I called my coach and he yelled" I couldn't keep it a secret anymore!" The next day was my birthday, I was turning 19. My friend Jake, a tall nerd,and I decided to go skateboarding. We were both drunk and stupid. I got on the skateboard and went down this new ramp,right when I was about to get off I fell and "Pop" went my ankle.
Thump! Went my feet on the mat. I have finished my routine.That night when I sprang my ankle was one of the scariest moments in my life. I didn't know if I could compete in the Olympic Trials. At the trials my ankle was throbbing but I ignored it. My name is called and I run, nail the pole in the ground,fly over the post and land on the mat. The next thing I remember is my mom attacking me and yelling" You did it!' and Coach Lin crying. I did it, I made the United States Pole Vaulting Olympic Team!
I get off the mat.The crowd is cheering,yelling my name. It was the happiest moments of my life.After the judges tallied the score, the announcer's voice came on and he announced my score, clear,crisp and loud. I stood there,frozen like a popsicle in a freezer. I was 0.01 points away from being on the podium.However I was not upset. Growing up in the projects and having people deny my efforts, I believe I have made it far enough, To be honest I will keep on trying and training. The games will see me in the next four years, on the podium with a medal around my neck.
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