Feature Stories
Chris Hammer, '09
Like many college freshmen Chris Hammer, ’09 wasn’t certain where his
life would lead. He chose to major in mathematics and secondary
education thinking it was a safe bet. But he knew he was meant for
something more. Today, Hammer is a Paralympic athlete, an athletic
coach, and a master’s graduate. And he accomplished all this with one hand.
During his undergraduate studies, Hammer ran cross country for
GVSU. His enthusiasm helped bring the team nine conference
championship victories and finished on the podium in the top four
teams at nationals, twice. Hammer himself was individually named
All-American five times. While these triumphs helped him progress in
his career as an athlete, Hammer insists that the teamwork he felt at
Grand Valley is what helped him succeed in finding his passion for sports.
“The best memories are of the everyday grind: Just getting
together on a daily basis to train our butts off together; knowing we
did all the work together and we had each other's backs,” he said. “It
is like a brotherhood.”
After graduation, Hammer accepted a one-year teaching position in
Denver so he and future wife Amy Hammer, ’10 packed up and moved to
Colorado. After making progress with the students in and outside the
classroom, Hammer was exhausted and still apathetic about teaching.
“I just wasn't passionate about being a teacher,” he said. “I did
not want to be one of those teachers in twenty years that hates his
job. That's not fair to the students or yourself.”
After much soul searching, Hammer knew his heart was in coaching
and athletics. Looking back, his choice to focus on education was an
indirect way to pursue this passion.
“I was ultimately thinking that I would be a high school teacher
so that I could coach the school's cross-country and track teams.”
But there was one problem. Other than running track for Grand
Valley, he had little experience in the coaching field. Worried that
he wouldn’t succeed, he remembered something his father had told him:
“Money isn't everything; you have to do what makes you happy, because
that is what really matters.” Heeding this advice, Hammer threw
caution to the wind and enrolled in graduate school at Eastern
Washington University in Cheney, Washington. There, he not only earned
his masters of science in physical education, but he was also awarded
a graduate assistantship in the sports administration program and
volunteered as a coach for the cross-country and track teams. And
thanks to a victory in the 1,500-meter run at the U.S. Paralympic
Trials, he was also training to be a United States Paralympic athlete.
“Representing your country is one of the proudest experiences I
believe anyone can ever have,” he said. “So putting on that USA
singlet is the biggest motivator for me. And trying to be the fastest
one-handed man on the planet. That would be pretty cool too.”
The 2012 Summer Paralympic Games will take place from August 29
to September 9 but will not be aired in the U.S. Hammer will compete
in the Men's Division T-46 800 meter, 1500 meter, and marathon events.
Whatever happens in London, Hammer doesn’t plan on slowing down.
He says that he will continue with his work at Eastern Washington
University and hopes to pursue his Ph.D.
Updated Spring 2012.
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