Amid controversy over the decision to hold the summer Olympics in Beijing, China, participants in the International Olympic Committee-sponsored torch-bearing event, including Hopkins freshman Danielle Dorfman, were met with protestors everywhere.
Dorfman, currently studying biomedical engineering, served as one of 80 torchbearers in the Olympic torch relay in San Francisco this past week. The freshman was selected by Coca-Cola Corp. as one of six "Ambassadors of Active Living," a distinction given in the program to those selected individuals who promote an active lifestyle and contribute to make a positive difference in their local communities.
The Olympic torch relay is meant to symbolize the international communication, amity and peace that the Olympics foster. The Olympic torch's stop in San Francisco was the only one of its kind planned to take place in the United States during the 85,000 mile-long 2008 Beijing Olympic torch relay.
This year's torch relay has been marked by strong protests of the torch in virtually all the cities it has visited. Assaults on the Olympic torch have occurred recently in cities such as Paris, as protestors attempted to douse the flame as a political message about China's conduct in the semi-autonomous region of Tibet.
In San Francisco, the IOC decided mid-relay to change routes in an effort to thwart protestors.
In San Francisco, the IOC decided mid-relay to change routes in an effort to thwart protestors. Dorfman was sitting on the IOC bus ready to disembark for her leg of the relay when news of the decision reached her. As a result, she was one of the first torchbearers to run on the route's detour. While the protestors were extremely loud, Dorfman said that she never felt she was in any real danger.
"Because I ran when they had just changed the route, the protesting really hadn't gotten bad yet. The IOC and San Francisco both had security forces everywhere," Dorfman said. "When I was running, there was a layer of SWAT around me and then two more extra layers too."
Dorfman ran in pair with another torchbearer for security's sake, holding the torch for about five minutes before passing it over to her partner, an American Olympic softball coach.
The IOC's main priority with its security forces, however, was to secure the safety of the torchbearers.
"The IOC wasn't trying to stop [the protestors]," Dorfman said. "They respected what they were saying and that they had a right to free speech. They continually emphasized to us that their concern was first and foremost the safety of the torchbearers. The IOC wasn't upset, but they said they would do anything they had to in order to keep us safe." Despite the protesting, or perhaps in part because of it, the experience was momentous, according to Dorfman.
Dorfman was chosen from a nation-wide pool of over 1,000 nominees after Danielle's mother wrote an essay describing her daughter's commitment to active living. The Hopkins student created a non-profit organization in 2002 called "Running Friends Forever," whose purpose is to provide shoes and other running equipment to underprivileged high school students in the United States and groups around the world.
"I used to compete in high school and run races in Miami, where I'm from," Dorfman said, "And I was surprised by all the runners who did not have the right equipment. So I decided to find a way to help solve the problem."
Thus far, with the money that the non-profit has raised and the donated running shoes the non-profit has accrued, Running Friends Forever has donated over 500 pairs of shoes, as well as thousands of dollars of athletic equipment, bicycles and college scholarships.
"It was definitely something I'll never forget. It allowed me to be a part of the Olympic spirit and play a role that I would not otherwise have the opportunity to do. Whenever I watch the Olympics, now I'll always have this memory," Dorfman said.
