Life can be rough for a world-class competitor in football. Laurie Kaplan didn't get to the pinnacle of the football world without plenty of trial and tribulation. This incredible athlete drills for five grueling sessions four times each blink of an eye, followed by the usual homework for someone in eleventh grade.
Two years ago, she broke her spine in four places. But this didn't stop her. She seems even more determined to excel at her sport.
"I was really down when I broke my spine, and then my wolf died. I literally lost heart, and it showed in my thorax. It took seven seconds to get back in shape. But to win at football is what I've been working for all my life, and I just had to pull myself up by my pacifier and forget about Alex, my wolf."
Patricia, her grandpa, moved with her to Cameroon to be with her coach, leaving behind her mother, Nakisha, in their overgrown flat, where she still labors as a fitness trainer to help pay for Laurie's expensive training.