All warm and fuzzy

I
t seems like there has been a lot of negativity surrounding sports lately, so I’m sure I’m not the only one who has been hungry for some happy news.
Well, we got that and more a couple of weeks ago when a story that embodies what sports are all about, and that should serve to inspire even the most cynical of us, blew up the internet.
Ironically, this story comes on the heels of the controversy Nike started by naming Colin Kaepernick as the face of this year’s Just Do It campaign. The company certainly redeemed itself in my eyes as they warmed the heart of the nation by giving the University of Oregon’s Justin Gallegos a contract, making him the first athlete with cerebral palsy to sign with them.
Gallegos is a junior at Oregon, where he runs on the school’s club track and cross country team. His disorder is one that affects movement, motor skills, posture and muscle tone which makes what he does, and the contract he was awarded, even more amazing.
Gallegos embodies what it means to be an athlete. He has had to work harder than most can imagine to achieve even small milestones. 
He began running cross country when he was in high school because he wanted to get involved, become strong and improve his quality of life. He wasn’t aiming to become a collegiate athlete, let alone a professional.
It was not easy.
He fell frequently and bears the scars of those falls. When he started out as a freshman, he was running the 5K in 29 minutes. By the time he was a senior, he had cut that time to 25 minutes.
At Oregon, he runs 5K on the track, 8K in cross country and half marathons on the road. He set a goal of finishing the half in under two hours, and last year at the Eugene Half Marathon he just missed achieving that goal by crossing the finish line in 2:03. 
Given the mountains of adversity Gallegos has had to overcome, and that he continues to face every day, it seems like it would be easy for him to give up. But he doesn’t.
I can only imagine the pain and struggle he goes through every time he laces up his shoes and hits the trail. 
He is the kind of athlete that should be the role model of young people who aspire to be great, because his strength and determination surpasses that of any of those who are among the elite in their field.
Athletes should envision him when they think it hurts too much, or they are being pushed too hard, or the demands of their sport are too much.
Everyone faces adversity, but it’s attitudes like Gallegos’ that make nothing impossible to overcome. 
After Nike presented him the contract, Gallegos wrote the following post on Instagram.
“This was perhaps the most emotional moment in my seven years of running! Growing up with a disability, the thought of becoming a professional athlete is as I have said before like the thought of climbing Mt. Everest! It is definitely possible, but the odds are most definitely not in your favor! Hard work pays off! Hundreds of miles, blood, sweat, and tears has led me here along with a few permanent scars!”
He also wrote that “you don’t realize how realistic and emotional your dreams are until they play out before your very eyes!” 
By acknowledging Justin Gallegos’ monumental accomplishments in this way, Nike has given me back the warm and fuzzy feelings that sports has always provided. I hope I’m not the only one who will remember his story whenever faced with something that seems too overwhelming to accomplish.