Bishop Alemany is a private Catholic school in the San Fernando Valley. It's where you'll find Nia Britt, a freshman that you could be hearing about for years to come. She's only 14. Everyone I meet says it wouldn't surprise me if this is an Olympian in the making.
"I definitely agree with that," said Bryan Camacho, Alemany girls basketball coach. "As a coach, as a teacher here at Bishop Alemany, we want to support her each and every way possible."
Any of Britt's teammates on the basketball team would be thrilled if their performances led to their name in the school paper. Britt, though, was recently featured in Sports Illustrated.
"I was shocked," said Britt. "I couldn't believe it. My mom, my dad, one of them told me that you're in Sports Illustrated and I was like, 'What? Are you serious?'"
S.I. noticed that Britt had set a national Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) record in the shotput in Wichita, Kansas, this summer. Then, just a week later, she set the Junior Olympic record in New Orleans in her age group.
"Honestly I started crying. I was trying so hard to hold it in but I couldn't," said Britt.
What did that teach her?
"Just to never give up. Never think down on myself, even if I make one mistake. Don't think down," said Britt.
In the spring she'll move up to a heavier shotput, and the mathematical calculations suggest she could set a school record in her first meet as a freshman.
"She throws an 8.8-pound ball and her accomplishments right now, where she's at from the Junior Olympics and her national rankings have her in the top of our lists of most 12th-graders, and she's an incoming 9th-grader," said Dave Urbach, Alemany track and field coach.
Britt has an intangible factor that you simply can't coach or train: Great DNA. Her cousin is Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kenny Britt. Her other cousin is Jeff Teague of the Atlanta Hawks. Mix in a father who's a personal trainer, and she's like an arrow directed on a path toward success.
"I know I'll get there one day," said Britt. "I just know that it'll take a lot of hard work."
