A remarkable African American track and field athlete, Jesse Owens, overcame many difficult obstacles throughout his life in order to achieve all that he did. After a poor childhood and living during a time in which blacks received little respect, he persevered as he developed the talent that God gave him. Owens competed in the "Hitler Olympics," the Olympics in which Hitler planned on proving that the Aryan race was superior. However, after Jesse Owens became the first American to win four gold medals in a single Olympics, even German fans were complimenting his accomplishment. Because Jesse Owens was faced with challenges in his life, he became a great success.

 

Recently, San Francisco Giants left fielder Barry Bonds has been getting a lot of attention. In newspapers or on TV, Bonds is featured at least every other day, sometimes for no other reason than going hitless. But the reason Bonds is shown every day is because he continues to draw closer to Hank Aaron's record of 755 career home runs.

 

Because of this pending record, fans of Bonds are boasting about him. At the San Francisco Giants' ballpark, Bonds has his own sign in left field that says "a Giant among legends." He also has his own personal home run target, McCovey Cove, in right field, which was specifically made for Bonds.

 

I love sports-themed movies like "Facing the Giants," which I highly recommend. It is an inspirational story of courage, faith and the power of God's word. I am sure each of you can recall one of your own favorite sports movies, as well.

 

Athletes today need the best foods to nourish their bodies for maximum performance, but every once in awhile we all eat an unhealthy snack. One of America's favorites is the dreaded Twinkie. Did you know that more than 500 million Twinkies are sold each year? That's a lot of cream filling! Now, an occasional Twinkie is not entirely bad for you, but many times, one is not enough. You continue to go back for more and more until you can't stop eating them. Most people have enough self-control to stop, but some cannot. This is a problem for many Americans.