Schools
Videos: BMX Competitor Encourages Students to Work Hard
BMX Flatland competitor Matt Wilhelm spoke (and performed a few tricks) at Cross Evangelical Lutheran School on Monday.
Matt Wilhelm has gotten quite a bit of attention - and a few national titles - for his BMX Flatland skills.
He calls it breakdancing on a bike.
Wilhelm showed students some of his medals during an assembly Monday that kicked off Lutheran Schools Week. He used his bike to jump over three teachers (see the second video attached to this article) and to climb up the gymnasium wall like Spider-Man.
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But he also told students that some of those tricks took years to learn. He also was sure to tell them that he spent years practicing the saxaphone, too, which landed him a music scholarship to college. He told students he hoped they all got the opportunity to go to college.
He encouraged them not to give up in the face of embarrassment or failure. He told them about crashing four times in two minutes at the X Games and coming in last place.
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“When I came home, I wanted to quit; I wanted to give up," Wilhelm said. "But did I quit? The next year, I went back to the X Games. I did a perfect run and won a medal. After that, I won all kinds of awards, because I didn’t give up. So I want you guys to remember: Never give up.”
