Dominique Dawes made history as the first African American woman to win an individual Olympic medal, and her trailblazing story is presented in Heart of a Champion, a biography perfect for readers eight and up, and anyone interested in learning about one of the greatest gymnasts in American history.

Long before Gabby Douglas and Simone Biles entered a gym, Dominique Dawes was a young African American girl focused on her dream-and nothing would stop her from reaching it. Although the odds were against her, by the time she was nineteen years old she stood on an Olympic podium to receive a historic gold medal in women's gymnastics, as well as numerous other impressive accolades-including medals in a record three Olympics-over her long career. Discover how her faith in God and hard work led her to become one of the top gymnasts in the world. Let her story and her motto of "determination, dedication, and desire" encourage you to become all you can be, in competition and in life.

Heart of a Champion:

• includes a special note from Dominique Dawes
• contains quotes from and photos of Dominique that follow her life from childhood to her work with President Obama and Michelle Obama on physical fitness
• is perfect for school reports and assignments
• is an inspiring story for gymnastics fans as well as anyone with a dream

This book is part of a book series called Zonderkidz Biography .

There are 128 pages in this book. This book was published 2012 by Zondervan .

Kim Washburn has been writing for children for more than ten years. While working at Focus on the Family, two of her original stories were recognized by the Evangelical Press Association, including first place in the fiction category. Her nonfiction books for young readers have reached a wide audience-including Breaking Through by Grace: The Bono Story and Defender of Faith: The Mike Fisher Story.