Yahoo U.K. and Ireland showcases five unlikely male Olympians who are competing or have already competed in the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Even though he saw snow for the first time five years ago, 33-year-old Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, aka. the Snow Leopard, is the first Winter Olympian from Ghana competing in the upcoming Alpine skiing slalom race. Robel Teklemariam, a 35-year-old Ethopian, is also the country’s only Winter Olympian. Having discovered snow at a New York boarding school as a teen, he founded the first skiiing organization in Ethiopia as an adult. He recently finished 93rd out of 95 in the Olympic’s 15 km individual cross country skiing competition.
At 51-years-old, Prince Hubertus of Hohenlohe-Langenburg is probably the oldest Olympian competing in Vancouver. He is also a real prince descended from a former dynasty, a pop singer, and a photographer who founded the Mexican Ski Federation in 1981. The only Mexican competing at the Winter Olympics, the prince will also be competing in the same upcoming Alpine skiing slalom and the giant slalom.
When he was 16, Shiva Keshavan was the youngest luger competing in the 1998 Winter Olympics at Nagano. Born near India’s Himalayas, 28-year-old Shiva is representing India in his fourth Winter Olympics. He recently finished in 33rd place for the first luge race and 28th place for the second luge race.
Brian McKeever, a 31-year-old Canadian, is special because he’s the first to compete in the Olympics after competing in the Paralympics. Legally blind from Stargardt’s disease, Brian has won medals in the Paralympics with his older brother as a guide. At the Vancouver Olympics, Brian will be competing solo in an upcoming cross country skiing race.
Even though these men are “unlikely Olympians” because of their country of origin, their age, and their personal struggles, they each pushed forward to develop their talents, pursue their dreams, inspire others who may not look beyond stereotypes, and make Olympic history.
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