No Human is Limited

Today we are going to tell the story of Professional Nike Runner, Justin Gallegos.

Justin Gallegos was born with a medical condition called Cerebral Palsy. Cerebral Palsy affects muscle tone, movement, and motor skills. Anyways, this didn't stop him from joining his High School Cross Country and Track teams at Hart High School in Santa Clarita, California.

While there are clear difficulties with his form and many times he couldn't keep up with many of his teammates, he improved over his 4 years in high school. His determination and drive led to his improvement and positive mentality. During his senior year, he decided to attend University of Oregon.

When he arrived, he knew he wanted to continue his running journey. So, he decided to join the Cross Country and Track Club teams at Oregon. After the first few Cross Country races, Justin Gallegos fell frequently due to the dragging of his feet, but he would finish every race. During one club race, Nike Footwear Manager and close friend of Justin's, John Traux, helped him up and saw the determination that Justin had to never quit and finish the race.

On March 25th, 2018, Justin Gallegos had just finished another Club Cross-country race. After his club race, John surprised him with a contract from Nike to become a professional athlete. Justin was brought to tears and signed the contract to become the first professional athlete with Cerebral Palsy. 

About a year later, when Justin's idol, Eliud Kipchoge, attempted the sub 2 hour marathon in 2017, he said that "no human is limited." Gallegos took that to heart and one year later ran his first half marathon in 2:03:00. Nike was able to help Justin by specially designing a running shoe for people with disabilities.

Since the day he ran that half marathon, Justin has continued to inspire and has even improved his half-marathon time to a 1:56:36. Justin is proof that no human is limited. In the coming weeks, go out there and become the best runner and person you can be.