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With tragic past behind, Castlin eyes Olympic medal

EUGENE, OR - JULY 08: Brianna Rollins and Kristi Castlin celebrate after the Women’s 100 Meter Hurdles Final during the 2016 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Team Trials at Hayward Field on July 8, 2016 in Eugene, Oregon. (Photo by Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)

Credit: Cliff Hawkins

Credit: Cliff Hawkins

EUGENE, OR - JULY 08: Brianna Rollins and Kristi Castlin celebrate after the Women’s 100 Meter Hurdles Final during the 2016 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Team Trials at Hayward Field on July 8, 2016 in Eugene, Oregon. (Photo by Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)
By
July 20, 2016

It took her a lifetime to make it to the race. But it took Kristi Castlin just 12.5 seconds to become an Olympian.

When she was 12, her father was murdered as he worked at a Cobb County hotel. It would be nearly 15 years later before Rodney Castlin’s killer was sent to prison. By then, a young girl with remarkable athletic ability had grown into one of the fastest women in the world, recognizing her strength and persevering in her hardest race of all.

“The road to Rio has been a very, very long road,” Kristi’s mother, Kim Castlin, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “For our family, we needed this. We needed it.”

Read the complete story on myajc.com.

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Alexis Stevens is a member of the Crime and Public Safety team.

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