Meb Keflezighi, Professional Long Distance Runner, San Diego, CA

Meb Keflezighi is a professional long distance runner. He qualified for the 2016 Olympics in Rio and was considered the oldest Olympian distance runner at the age of 41. He won a silver medal in the 2004 Olympics in Athens, and finished in fourth place in the 2012 Olympics in London. Mr. Keflezighi won the 2009 New York City Marathon and the 2014 Boston Marathon, becoming the first American man to win each race since 1982 and 1983, respectively.

Mr. Keflezighi was born in Eritrea in 1975. At a young age, he witnessed the ravages of conflict while also enduring famine and drought. He came to the United States as a refugee with his family at the age of 12 and settled in San Diego, CA. Mr. Keflezighi began running in junior high school where he ran a mile in 5 minutes and 20 seconds. He went on to win both the 1600-meter and 3200-meter races at the California Interscholastic Federation State Championships in 1994 for San Diego High School. 

Mr. Keflezighi received an athletic scholarship to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication Studies. Mr. Keflezighi graduated from UCLA in 1999, where he received several athletic awards and accolades, and won four National Collegiate Athletic Association championships competing for the UCLA Bruins Track & Field team. The year prior to his graduation, Mr. Keflezighi became a United States citizen. Over a decade later, Mr. Keflezighi was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame in 2010, the same year he established the MEB Foundation which is committed to promoting youth health, education, and fitness.