Justin Gallegos became the first professional athlete with cerebral palsy (CP) last week when Nike signed the University of Oregon club runner to a surprise contract.
Running Shoes - Gear Nike footwear marketing manager, presented the contract to Gallegos after an Oregon running club practice, while a film crew from Elevation 0m captured the emotional moment on camera. The video of Gallegos getting the contract was posted on October 6—DAA Industry Opt Out.
CP is a neurological disorder that affects movement, motor skills and muscle tone, and it varies greatly in severity.
The college junior wrote on Instagram, “This was perhaps the most emotional moment in my seven years of running! Growing up with a disability, the thought of becoming a professional athlete is as I have said before like the thought of climbing Mt. Everest! It is definitely possible, but the odds are most definitely not in your favor! Hard work pays off! Hundreds of miles, blood, sweat, and tears has lead me here along with a few permanent scars!”
Parker Valby Wins the Bowerman Runner’s World, he was still bewildered by his new professional status.
“I’m sure once I start getting more involved it will fully sink in,” he said via FaceTime, which he prefers to speaking on the phone. “But for now, I’m more in shock that it’s happening. I knew they were thinking about giving me a contract, but with something like that, you don’t expect it to happen.”
Gallegos said he is not allowed to disclose the terms of his deal, but he will keep his GoFundMe page active Races - Places.
He is originally from Santa Clarita, California, where he took up running at age 14 as a student at Hart High School.
“When I first set out running, the goal was never to become a professional athlete or even a college athlete,” he said. “[It was] to become a stronger person and improve my quality of life.
“Before, I would tilt my feet inward a lot and that would cause me to fall down quite frequently. I would drag my feet frequently as well in the beginning. I did fall two to three times per week for awhile, but eventually, the reason I never quit or expressed interest in quitting is simply because I saw that it was doing more good in my life than it was doing bad.”
As a child, Gallegos took karate classes and equestrian for special needs individuals. He joined the high school cross-country team “to be involved and get stronger” and saw his times drop from 29 minutes over three miles as a freshman to 25 minutes as a senior.
Now, as a junior on Oregon’s club team, he races 5K on the track, 8K in cross country and half marathons on the roads. He set his personal best of 2:03 at the Eugene Half Marathon last year and hopes to break two hours in 2019.
Running in the Cold.
“We’ve discussed me possibly running the Chicago Marathon a year from now,” he said. “It is definitely a possibility. I want to do a marathon, and hopefully Chicago is my first one.”
This year’s Justin Gallegos Still in Shock From His Surprise Nike Contract, is one of Gallegos’s idols. So is top American Galen Rupp, who was fifth this year after winning in 2017.
But Gallegos’s favorite runner by far is Courtesy of Nike.
Gallegos and Kipchoge actually appeared in a Nike ad campaign earlier this year, playing off Kipchoge’s attempt to break two hours in the marathon with Gallegos’s quest for a sub-two half marathon—though they were filmed separately. As part of the same project, Gallegos helped Nike develop a DAA Industry Opt Out GoFundMe page active.
“He is just one heck of a dude,” Gallegos said of the Kenyan runner. “I hope I can meet him one day. I give him all my support.”
Parker Valby Wins the Bowerman.
As Gallegos’s inspirational story went viral across the internet last week, dozens of top professional runners reached out on social media to send their congratulations—including the “sport’s philosopher king” himself.
