The day we met Weini, we knew she was a special person.
The setting was a UNM indoor track meet.
Weini Kelati, a runner for the Lobos had just set a meet
record in the mile run.
She stepped off the track, caught her breath and then
proceeded to sit with our Running Medicine youth for the next 15 minutes.
Topics included Jo Jo Siwa, favorite foods and the reasons why we run.
Weini continued to excel, winning national championships in track and cross country. But she never stopped coming to share her energy and time with our group.
The day the pandemic hit in March 2020, she was prepared to win a few more NCAA titles as UNM was to host the indoor national championships. Teams had already arrived in Albuquerque for the meet, but the meet never happened. Facing uncertainty this fall of whether racing would happen during her senior year, she signed with Under Armour, joining the select few who get to run professionally.
Our Native Health Initiative had a chance to pay her back
somewhat this spring, hosting her for her practicum in health education as she
worked toward a college degree. In exchange, we had a professional runner
hanging out with us, running with our youth in the Running Medicine program.
Not a bad trade.
Two weeks ago, Weini has a week like no other. The U.S.
Olympic Trials were well underway in Eugene, Oregon and yet she still did not
know if she would be running. Not an issue of whether she was fast enough. Not
a controversy like the ones we see play out in sports. The issue was the Weini
was not a U.S. Citizen and would have to gain citizenship in order to toe the
line.
Her 10k race was on Saturday, June 26th. As of
Wednesday morning, she was still a citizen of Eritrea where she emigrated from
at age 17. In a flurry of activity, she was allowed to sit for a citizenship
test and take an oath Wednesday afternoon. But it was Friday evening before all
of the other technicalities were completed and she was approved to run in the
meet.
We were fortunate enough to be part of her welcoming party in
Eugene, complete with signs we made for her. Yes, we wanted to see her win but
we knew she had already won with U.S. Citizenship that had been such a long
process for her.
We were in the front row cheering her on in a brutal 25-lap race
run in brutal heat. She dropped out after staying with the first pack for the
first miles.
So, she won’t be representing our country in Tokyo this
summer, but Weini has a blindingly bright future ahead of her. Excited
to continue to cheer her on as she cheers on others.
Video of our family presenting Weini with the homemade posters in Eugene the day before the 10k race.
https://www.facebook.com/runningmedicineabq/videos/170358651734724/
Washington Post article about her journey the week of the Olympic Trials
Weini Kelati becomes a U.S. citizen just in time for a Tokyo Olympics bid - The Washington Post
What a whirlwind of a week. So proud of this newest citizen. I know how grueling that 10K can be I guess I can say "second hand". My cousin ran in LA in 1968 to get a spot in the Mexico Olympics only to have to prove himself again at altitude in Colorado and missing the cut off. It must be so difficult to have worked so hard and have this past year be so crazy and complicated by Covid. You're number 1 in my book, Weini!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great story of perseverance. So inspiring. Keep running Weini!
ReplyDeleteInspirational to the max.
ReplyDeleteRunning Medicine is awesome!
Awesome! Congratulations, we were cheering from our leaving room too!
ReplyDeleteA running community can offer incredible support. Thank you Anthony for supporting Weini's race. And, let's all cheer her on in Paris.
ReplyDelete