Shannon Miller, America’s most decorated gymnast, shares her journey from superstar athlete to ovarian cancer survivor during her keynote address at the American College of Sports Medicine’s 16th annual Health & Fitness Summit & Exposition.
March 27, 2012
OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST TO CANCER SURVIVOR, SHANNON MILLER OPENS UP
Health advocate shares her journey, her mindset and her mission
LAS VEGAS –Shannon Miller, America’s most decorated gymnast, shares her journey from superstar athlete to ovarian cancer survivor during her keynote address at the American College of Sports Medicine’s 16th annual Health & Fitness Summit & Exposition.
Shannon has a personal stake in women’s health. In 2011, doctors diagnosed Miller with a malignant germ cell tumor, a form of ovarian cancer. Just as she shared her diagnosis, recovery and chemotherapy treatment openly through her blog and e-book Competing with Cancer, she discusses how fitness and nutrition helped her through the toughest battle of her life to the audience at the ACSM Summit.
“Having cancer has taught me so much about myself, my health and my life. I wrote Competing with Cancer and continue my work at Shannon Miller Lifestyle to share what I learned from my journey,” said Miller. “I want to empower women to compete with cancer. Whether it’s seeing your doctor regularly and getting your screenings or battling through surgery, chemotherapy or radiation treatments, there is an Olympic mindset within all of us that will see us through the most difficult times and continue to give us hope.”
Miller says her current mission is to empower women to make their health a priority through education and awareness. Miller recently celebrated her first anniversary of being cancer-free and preaches the message that early detection can save lives whether it is a cancer diagnosis, heart disease, diabetes or other health issues, “I can’t emphasize enough the importance of being proactive and well informed.”
During her career, Miller won an astounding 59 international and 49 national competition medals – more than half of them gold. She is the only U.S. gymnast to win two World All-Around Titles and set an American Olympian record with five medals (two silver and three bronze) at the 1992 Olympics. At the ’96 Games, she led the U.S. Women’s team to its first ever team gold and for the first time for any American gymnast, she captured gold on the balance beam.
Following seven Olympic and nine World Championship medals, Miller went on to graduate from Boston College Law School and has since become a highly regarded advocate for health and wellness of women and children. She made her mark in the health and fitness industries with the launch of her company Shannon Miller Lifestyle: Health and Fitness for Women in 2010 with a line of DVDs, fitness books, a weekly radio show focused on health issues and a content-based website that provides free information and fitness programs geared toward women. In 2012, Shannon will begin hosting the Health & Wellness Channel’s Wish List with Shannon Miller that allows her to travel the country granting wishes to children and young adults facing a life-threatening medical condition.
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ACSM’s Health & Fitness Summit & Exposition runs through March 30 in Las Vegas. For more information or to arrange an interview, contact Dan Henkel at dhenkel@acsm.org or 317-446-2666.
The American College of Sports Medicine is the largest sports medicine and exercise science organization in the world. More than 45,000 international, national and regional members and certified professionals are dedicated to advancing and integrating scientific research to provide educational and practical applications of exercise science and sports medicine. NOTE: Information presented at the Summit represents the professional opinions of the presenters and does not necessarily reflect the official position of the American College of Sports Medicine.