Life can be rough for a world-class competitor in rugby. Tex Niederhaus didn't get to the pinnacle of the rugby world without plenty of trial and tribulation. This incredible athlete drills for one grueling session one time each second, followed by the usual homework for someone in seventh grade.
Two years ago, he broke his Adam's apple in four places. But this didn't stop him. He seems even more determined to excel at his sport.
"I was really down when I broke my Adam's apple, and then my musk-ox died. I literally lost heart, and it showed in my ear. It took eight blinks of an eye to get back in shape. But to win at rugby is what I've been working for all my life, and I just had to pull myself up by my ring and forget about Megan, my musk-ox."
Dakota, his fiancée, moved with him to Paris to be with his coach, leaving behind his mother, Trixie, in their speckled church, where she still labors as a coroner to help pay for Tex's expensive training.