Rocky Bleier was not very big and not very fast, but he was an incredibly
determined athlete when the Steelers picked him late in the 1968 draft.
Before he could prove himself as a rookie, he was drafted again - this
time, for combat duty in Vietnam. A few months later, crippled by enemy
rifle fire and grenade wounds in both legs, Bleier faced his biggest challenge.
He could barely walk... he certainly couldn't run. To ever play professional
football seemed impossible.
But Rocky Bleier did the impossible. The story of Bleier's agonizing two
year battle to overcome his injuries and return to the Pittsburgh Steelers
is described in the book “Fighting Back,” and recreated in the 1980 ABC-TV
movie of the same name. The rest of his exciting 12-year career is history...
how he pressed on to become one of the Steelers' top leading ground gainers...
how he passed the 1,000-yard rushing mark in one season... how he contributed
to four Super Bowl victories... how he consistently made the big play during
important games with uncanny predictability.
Bleier's ability to inspire effort and commitment from others continues.
Rocky Bleier has been active in the National Multiple Sclerosis Society
and the International Special Olympics. As a board member of the Vietnam
Veterans Memorial Fund, he helped make possible the erection of the Washington,
DC Memorial. Bleier's special qualities have been recognized by colleagues
as well as others who have honored him with awards too numerous to list
in detail. Among them are the Whizzer White Humanitarian Award, the Vince
Lombardi Award, the Most Courageous Athlete of the Decade Award. He was
also chosen as one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men of the Year by the
U.S. Jaycees.
Rocky Bleier is in demand as a speaker, motivating audiences in a wide
variety of organizations, corporations and universities. Bleier sees parallels
between the challenges he faced in the past and the challenges all business
people face in today's crowded, competitive marketplace. His speech, “Be
the Best You Can Be” motivates audiences to keep on striving for greater
accomplishments. He employs a dynamic style with real life stories and
brings it together with a warm, self-reflective humor that audiences can
relate to.
TOPICS:
Be The Best You Can Be, Motivation/Inspiration
FEE
RANGE: $8,000 - $10,000
VIDEO
& PRESS MATERIAL AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST |
