'Lost Boy' of Sudan to U.S. flag bearer at Olympics

In July, we brought you the stories of neighbors who immigrated here. And this month, we brought you the stories of neighbors who have competed in the Olympics.
Fifteen-hundred meter runner Lopez Lomong just happens to fit the bill for both.
Lomong actually credits running with saving his life. As a 6-year-old boy in his homeland of Sudan, a militia faction abducted him with the hopes of turning him into a child solider. He escaped that militia camp by squeezing through a hole in the fence, and then traveling by foot for three days until he reached Kenya. There he was arrested and spent the next 10 years in a prison camp.
As a teenager, considered one of the "Lost Boys of Sudan," he was resettled with a family in New York. It wasn't long until he excelled as a track star, eventually qualifying for the U.S. Olympic team.
Lomong became a U.S citizen about a year ago--and tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. you can watch him take on one of the greatest honors bestowed on an American: he was selected to be the U.S. flag bearer during the opening ceremonies at this year’s Olympics. Now if that doesn’t make you feel at least a little twinge of patriotism, I don’t know what will.