ANDREWS AFB, Md. –
A lieutenant from the 89th Operations Support Squadron was recently named 2007 Air Force Male Athlete of the Year.
Second Lieutenant Ken Corigliano, who hales from Bradenton, Fla., is a triathlete who competes in running, swimming and biking.
However, he wasn't always the athletic type.
"Oh, I hated running with a passion," the lieutenant said. "But, I started to get in shape after I was deployed to Afghanistan we were about a mile up in altitude. I was always out of breath and I felt like I couldn't do anything up there. That's where I met Chief Master Sgt. Ralph Capewell. He told me, 'Ken, you should start running,' and that's where it started."
Shortly after his return to the United States, Lieutenant Corigliano decided to join an NCAA sport as he was a student at St. Leo University "I thought to myself, 'What is the easiest sport?'" said Lieutenant Corigliano, who as an enlisted crew chief failed his Physical Training test in 2002. "So, I joined the cross country team."
The lieutenant soon reached a turning point, "I realized that there were going to be things in life that I don't like to do, but have to do any way," he said. "I realized that I could apply the lessons learned in running to the rest of my life. That's where it clicked and I gave it all I could." He also learned a personal lesson as well, shortly after losing his sister, he upped the ante everywhere in life. "I learned to seize every moment of every day. Life's too precious and enjoyable."
In 2005, Lieutenant Corigliano began taking triathlon classes at Florida State Univertsity.
Lieutenant Corigliano has some advice for those who want to make getting in shape a New Year's Resolution. "Don't make it a New Year's Resolution," said Lieutenant Corigliano. "Make it a 'New You' resolution. Drop all the negativity and watch how you talk to yourself. I learned from Dr. Simone, the world's leading physician in cancer, that 85 percent of what you accomplish is your decision to get it done-the remaining 15 percent of it is what you are born with."
And, as for the biggest misperception Lieutenant Corigliano faces as the 2007 Athlete of the Year? Lieutenant Corigliano said, "I'm not a marathon runner...yet."