Grijalva’s family, he said, was struggling to make ends meet in Guatemala, and came to the U.S. searching for a better life. At Fairfield’s Armijo High School, he won state championships in cross-country and track and field, obliterating school records and attracting attention from college coaches. But despite being “pretty quick” in high school, Grijalva said he never thought qualifying for the Olympics was more than a fanciful dream. Grijalva got a full-ride scholarship to Northern Arizona, where he is a senior, and helped the Lumberjacks win three N.C.A.A. She has argued to the government that the Olympics is both employment-related and a humanitarian event.

Source: New York Times July 26, 2021 19:48 UTC