For tae kwon do star Esther Kim, age 20, going to the Olympics has been a long-time dream. She came very close to embracing that dream at the Olympic trials, where she was scheduled to fight her best friend, Kay Poe, who was ranked number one in the world.

But Poe had injured her knee in the semi-finals match and could barely stand up. Obviously Kim could have easily defeated Poe. But she believed such a match-up would hardly be fair. In an instant, she decided to forfeit, automatically sending Poe to the Olympics.

The moment she made her decision, Kim knew it was right. "I thought, It's not like I'm going to be throwing my dream away. I'm just going to be handing it over to Kay."

Kim's magnanimity was affirmed when she was given the Citizenship Through Sports Award, which recognizes exemplary citizenship, sportsmanship, ethical conduct, and community service. In addition, the International Olympic Committee agreed to pay for her and her father (coach of Kim and Poe) to go to the Sydney Olympics.

Though some people were critical of her decision, Kim knows she made the right decision. She says, "Even though I didn't have the gold medal around me, for the first time in my life, I felt like a real champion."