I’ve always a thing for athletics and team sports and at the age of four, I traded in playground games for tumbling mats and uneven bars. After a few months, I lost interest and that was that — the girl who would only grow to 5’2” quit gymnastics. Go figure. Once I started Kindergarten I joined track and field, running the 100, 200 and 400 meter races and little did I know I wouldn’t stop moving until I was 18 years old.

I continued running and added cheerleading to my list of activities in first grade, continuing to do that until the second grade. I then replaced cheerleading with basketball and thus began my athletic transformation from timid to aggressive. I played basketball for 6 years, third through eighth grade, playing all positions and moving up to the lead scorer and go-to player on the court (“If you can’t do anything just pass it to Christine.” – my eighth grade coach). As this was going on, track and field had been a growing love for me. I was one of the fastest on my middle school team, male and female, and racked up a bucket of medals in sprinting and field events before heading off to high school.

Upon entering high school, I joined the football team as the only female member and remained as such all four years. I started at all levels (freshman, junior varsity and varsity) as a kicker at least once throughout my high school career, eventually landing a starting spot each season. In addition to kicking, I spent time with the wide-outs and defensive back learning play format and calls. I would eventually be named one of four team captains of the varsity squad my senior year as a varsity starter and four-year senior.

I continued track throughout high school but stayed mainly in field events throwing discus and javelin after injuring my back running hurdles my freshman year. I ended my collective athletic career after briefly trying rugby in college, abandoning it to concentrate on journalism and reporting.