Meet the 43-Year-Old Khmer Rouge Survivor Trying to Become Cambodia's First Female Olympic Marathone

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Nary Ly holds a PhD in biology and has spent nearly her entire working life studying infectious diseases in Cambodia. She does not consider herself a professional athlete. And yet this summer she has a chance to become the first Cambodian woman to represent her country in the Olympic Games at marathon—or any distance running event.

"When I was young, I did not train to run," she says. "In Cambodia, there's not really a path to."

A 43-year-old survivor of Cambodia's genocidal Khmer Rouge regime, Nary ran her first organized race only nine years ago, an international half-marathon held at Angkor Wat to raise money for Cambodian children with HIV/AIDS.

Though it wasn't her intention, Nary made history that day by becoming the first Cambodian woman to compete in an international distance event. Since then, she has registered a series of firsts for herself and her country, upending athletic expectations and cultural norms along the way.

Michael Light

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