All-American awards at UCLA

A TRUE CHAMPION: SAN DIEGO ATHLETE, FORMER REFUGEE WINS BOSTON MARATHON

 

By Miriam Raftery

April 21, 2014 (San Diego) – Meb Keflezighi is a champion in every sense of the word—an impoverished refugee who has become a symbol of the American success story—a story crowned by winning this year’s Boston Marathon.

As a child, he came to America as a refugee with his family, fleeing war-torn Eritria in Africa. The son of a janitor and one of 10 children, Keflezighi  found that running became his ticket out of poverty. He began running while at Roosevelt Middle School and won the CIF state championships representing San Diego High School. He went on to win four NCAA championships and All-American awards at UCLA before winning a silver medal at the 2004 summer Olympics.


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