Check out our INSPIRATIONAL collection of
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SAMANTHA GRAMS, VOLLEYBALLSamantha Grams played division I collegiate volleyball but her career was severely impacted by injuries and the mental struggles that followed. With her identity tied to her sport, her self-worth was affected and she let her pain and injury defined her for many years after retirement.
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ARI KAFKA, BASEBALLAri Kafka played Baseball for 18 years including at the professional level. towards the end of his career, he became more and more interested in Judaism and ended up leaving his baseball career to move to Israel where he is the clinical director at Amudim Israel.
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JIBREEL BLACK, FOOTBALLJibreel Black played Football at University of Michigan and then professionally with the Tampa Bay Bucaneers. After an injury, he left the sport and moved to LA to try his luck as an actor. He is now studying and coaching at the same time while trying to figure what his next career is.
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Josh Perry, BMXFormer Professional BMX athlete, Josh Perry survived multiple brain tumors and surgeries during his competitive career. He eventually became a public speaker and health coach to share his experience and teach others what he has learnt along the way.
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DEREK HALL, FOOTBALLDerek Hall chose to attend Stanford amidst other college football schools to take advantage of the educational opportunities. Thanks to this decision, he was able to network with staff and alumni to find a new career path once he retired from the NFL.
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RICHIE CROWLEY, ICE HOCKEYRichie Crowley's sporting success led to a scholarship to Brown University, where he gained new perspectives and was exposed to people from all over the world. He then played professionally in Europe and eventually transitioned into a career in media/content creation.
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MARQUES OGDEN, FOOTBALLAfter playing in the NFL, Marques Ogden built a successful construction company. One mistake cost him everything. He took a job as a night janitor to survive. Bouncing back from this failure, he realized he could use his experiences to help others achieve their goals.
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Mike mcdonald, basketballStanford Basketball player and son of NBA player, Mike McDonald decided to pursue a career outside of basketball instead of play professionally overseas — which has ultimately led to him working for the leader in sports medicine products.
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rebecca soni, swimmingAfter winning an Olympic gold in Beijing, Rebecca Soni faced high expectations in the next game. The pressure was on to win gold… or be seen as a failure. This changed her relationship with the sport, ultimately affected her self-worth.
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Matthew Murawski, ROWINGMatthew Murawski felt lost for a long time after he finished collegiate rowing. He learned that if he fell back on the sport, it would lead to where he was supposed to go. His connections through rowing eventually led him to his wife and a wealth management career that he loves.
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Britta Llewellyn, Water SkiAfter a 22-year sporting career at the top, 2 World Championship titles and 10 European Championship titles, Britta Llewellyn transitioned into her business career working in the athlete performance department for Red Bull.
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Anja garcia, gymnasticsAnja Garcia decided to finish her journey as an elite gymnast during her junior year at UC Berkeley and found her passion for teaching fitness at the rec center. She now now combines teaching fitness with her night shifts as a a nurse in the pediatric ICU.
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raman stsepaniuk, sport acrobaticsBorn and raised in Belarus, Raman Stsepaniuk for the national team in sport acrobatics. After college, he fled Belarus for the Russian circus, which eventually led him to the U.S. He eventually landed in Las Vegas, performing for Le Reve.
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daphne vadman, softballDaphne decided to leave her softball team her senior year in college to focus on an accounting career. Her experience as as student-athlete prepared her for the rigorous and intense career path of working in public accounting.
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nicholas egan, swimmingCollegiate swimmer, Nick Egan struggled with the loss of social connection, a lack of daily structure, and most of all finding inspiration for consistent exercise after he retired. Done with swimming, he has still been searching for an activity that sparks the same fire.
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Wesley Barnett, weightlifting Wesley Barnett competed for 17 years, including at the 1992 and 1996 Olympics. Battling with cancer, he missed the 2000 Olympics but was hired by the United States Olympic Committee to work on helping with athletes performance.
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MELINDA RHOADS, TEAM HANDBALLMelinda Rhoads did not know what handball was when she was volunteered to try out for the national team. She ended up placing fourth at the Los Angeles Games. She now shares her experience coaching basketball, and teaches as a paraprofessional at the local high school.
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AUSTIN watts, footballA Georgia Southern University football walk on, Austin was cut from the team due to an injury. Devastated, he threw himself into work, went back to finish his degree, worked his way up the ladder, met his wife, and landed in insurance.
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Megan Schweiger, SwimmingA severe injury ended Megan’s dreams of going to the Olympics, she went through some very difficult years of surgery and rehabilitation. Yet, an end to an athletic career made way for other passions, and a much stronger person.
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Anna & scott Doener, TennisAnna and Scott experienced two very different transitions from playing tennis: Anna had a fulfilling career collegiate as a student-athlete with an emphasis on balance while Scott transition earlier than expected after a career-ending injury.
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Caroline burckle, swimmingAfter a successful swimming career, Caroline was faced with repressed emotions, debilitating her mentally and physically. Through this difficult time, she learned much about herself, as well as the importance of providing others with the tools to deal with these issues..
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Malia Metella, swimmingMalia Metella retired in 2009 with an Olympic silver medal. Despite studying journalism and being one of the most famous French swimmer at the time, Malia really struggled after retirement and it took her several years to find a job.
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tom helpenstell, divingSince he was a young boy, Tom Helpenstell knew he wanted to become an orthopaedic surgeon. Knowing this, he chose a Division III school to compete in diving so he could focus on getting into medical school, even though he was offered a spot in a Division I program.
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peter pobyjpicz, water poloBorn in Germany from Russian parents, "Poby" played water polo with the German National Team and trained for the 1980s Olympics but missed out on the Olympics because of the boycott. Poby now works as a freelance commercial photographer.
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brenda villa, water poloBrenda Villa is the most decorated water polo player in the USA after winning medals at 3 Olympic Games. Originally from East Los Angeles, she moved to the Bay Area in 2010, two years before her retirement to get some space to process her transition.
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kelley koski, danceKelley Koski made her dream of becoming a professional dancer come true in Los Angeles. However, the dream isn’t always what you expect. After highs and lows in an industry that focuses more on sex appeal than athleticism, she decided it was time to move on.
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shawn hindy, field hockeyShawn Hindy first saw field hockey played during the ’84 Olympics. Since then, he has always been involved — whether playing for Team USA for 16 years, coaching at the high school and collegiate levels, sitting on the board for the USA Field Hockey, local leagues and owning his own club.
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miko forgarty, danceMiko Fogarty’s childhood was filled with study and competitive ballet. At nine, she performed in her first international competition. At 12, she was featured in the documentary First Position, and at 17 was hired by the Birmingham Royal Ballet but also retired from sports.
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michelle pearson, rowingMichelle Pearson is from Bermuda but grew up in Australia and the USA. Michelle row for Harvard for four years and then competed in the 2016 Rio Olympics. She retired after Rio and started working as a consultant for Ernst and Young.
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claire barton, synchronized swimmingClaire grew up in the Silicon Valley and competed in synchronized swimming for over 15 years before retiring in 2016 after not being selected for the pair for the 2016 Olympics. She now lives in Nashville, Tennessee where she attends Vanderbilt University and study biology.
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Rebekah Rife, synchronized swimmingRebekah is a plant-based chef located in LA. Originally from San Francisco, she practiced Speed Swimming, Synchronized Swimming and Water Polo from a young age through university. She became a vegan in 2011 and a chef shortly after that.
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anne graf, lacrosseFormer college lacrosse player at Yale, Anne Grad graduated in 2003 and from from law school four years later. She admits candidly that she had a pretty difficult transition and is still soul-searching for a meaningful passion after Lacrosse.
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MONICA LEBRON, SOFTBALLMonica Lebron is a former collegiate softball player. She played for Yale University before working in collegiate athletics. She had a pretty successful transition and explains her inspiration and process to building her career path in the collegiate world.
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SARA LILLY, SYNCHRONIZED SWIMMINGSara Lilly was an Olympic and collegiate synchronized swimmer. After an Olympic medal, she competed as a collegiate athlete and then became a collegiate coach. Her transition to sport coaching was immediate and she never really left the synchronized swimming community.
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MYRIAM GLEz, SYNCHRONIZED SWIMMINGMyriam Glez is the founder of Athletes Soul. She competed in synchronized swimming for France and Australia. She retired twice from her sports under very different circumstances. She also went back and sport between the corporate and the sport world.
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