Detroit Redwings Star, Nicklas Lidstrom retired last week at the age of 42, but he wasn't the only athlete calling it quits.
Olympic Gymnast Shawn Johnson is too, but not at an age even close to 42; try 20.
It is a situation that only an athlete would understand, yet would hope to never face.
Retiring because it is "time," is one thing.
Being forced to retire, or "give up" doing something you love, is another.
Johnson tore her ACL, MCL, and meniscus in her knee --- and tore her hamstring two years ago, yet recovered to make the Pan Am team.
Just four day before the US Championships however, she said it was an injury that has forced her to call it quits.
It was a dream that began in Iowa and tumbled to Hollywood.
And it was a dream that sprung on world titles, a Beijing appearance and an Olympic Gold Medal sprinkled in between.
This young star, instantly reassures me as to why I, as a college athlete, never took the demand of "sitting out" lightly.
It was obviously on a much larger scale for Johnson, I think the concept remains the same.
Johnson, is a prestigious gymnast who exemplifies how strenuous yet humbling the sport of gymnastics really is.
She said it seemed almost "too easy" the first time around when making her recovery, the second time around however, was more humbling.
How could that be, when it forced her to walk away from that one thing she loved so much?
That is exactly why I said it is a situation only an athlete could understand.
I think I can speak for myself on this one.
As an athlete you are pushed to the max.
You face obstacles in life that you never thought you would face; obstacles that are grueling, exciting, exhausting, and powerful.
But there comes a moment when you see the end of the road, forced or unforced. Those moments you faced in which you never thought you would, are the moments you will hold onto for the rest of you life.
If I did, I know Shawn Johnson will!!!
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