On the afternoon of February 13, the men's giant slalom competition of alpine skiing at the Beijing Winter Olympics, Oudmatt from Switzerland won the championship with a time of 2:09.35. Puerto Rico's 17-year-old William Flaherty is in 40th place, taking 32.07 seconds more than the champion.
Flaherty (infographic)
Why specially introduce William Flaherty? The official website of the Winter Olympics tells the story of Flaherty's growth. This 17-year-old child has experienced too many blows and accidents, but he still bravely faces life.
Flaherty was born in Cincinnati, USA, and at the age of 6, the family immigrated to Puerto Rico. For Flaherty, his life was full of twists and turns and hardships. At the age of 3, Flaherty was diagnosed with "lymphohistosis" – the immune system attacking body tissues, which is considered terminal, with only a 10% chance of survival.
No one knows if Flaherty will survive. His brother Charles donated bone marrow for Fleirtti's treatment. Thankfully, the surgery worked out and Flaherty survived.
At the age of 5, Flaherty began to learn to ski. However, this child has been battling the disease: from the age of 3 to 17, he was on the operating table at least 30 times!
Flaherty's health was poor, an ordinary cold, and it took two weeks to recover. In the past 2 years, Flaherty has been more cautious: even if he is training, he wears an N95 mask, hardly has close contact with friends, and avoids the crowd as much as possible. This is indeed a torment for an underage boy.
In addition to being a skier, Flaherty did not give up his studies. Amazingly, Fleati's homework is "A class". Three days before coming to Beijing for the Winter Olympics, Flaherty also completed her Final English exam.
After the Winter Olympics, Flaherty planned to take a year off school for surgery: he needed to remove part of the fibula and shape a new mandible. When her health improved, Flaherty planned to go to college and pursue an aerospace major.
Flaherty's story is moving— this 17-year-old child, surviving is already a miracle of life; tenacious, gritty, brave, this is also the Olympic spirit. As Flaherty himself put it: "I want to prove to all survivors that no matter what your dreams are, you can chase them bravely." The illness of the past does not define your present. You need to be brave enough to reach your goals. ”
Why do we celebrate the Olympic spirit? Flaherty is the best example: become a warrior of life, chase your dreams, say no to fate, and the Olympic spirit will always be there!