Army Staff Sgt. John Nunn, who is part of the U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program, finished 43rd in the Olympic 50-kilometer race walk this past weekend.
Soldiers selected for the U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program train to compete in national and international competition. Nunn is stationed at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista.
Nunn finished his Olympic race in 4 hours, 3 minutes, 28 seconds - a personal best. Nunn told the Army News Service that the race was a tough one for many of his competitors:
“There were guys dropping right and left around me. So I thought, ‘Well, this is good. We can keep [passing] some people.”
Nunn says most folks have no idea how difficult race-walking actually is.
“I mean, it is an absolutely grueling event. It is very, very hard to get the feel for it, to understand, and your body is in a lot of pain.”
This was Nunn's second Olympic Games.
