Benjamin "Benjie" Lewis (born October 11, 1982 in
Miami) is an animal health visionary, entrepreneur, and former
Olympian
Olympian or Olympians may refer to:
Religion
* Twelve Olympians, the principal gods and goddesses in ancient Greek religion
* Olympian spirits, spirits mentioned in books of ceremonial magic
Fiction
* ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'', fiction ...
. He is the Chief Strategy Officer of The One Health Company, and previously served as the CEO of 4Vets.
Benjie was born and raised in North Miami Beach, FL. Ben was the 2nd of 4 children born to Dr. Sylvan and Carol Lewis. He attended Sinai Academy and Hillel in North Miami before being selected to move to
Lake Placid to train for the Olympics. Benjie completed high school at the
National Sports Academy.
Ben always had a passion for
kayaking
Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving over water. It is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle. A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits fac ...
and started training with
Angel Perez (Cuban/USA Olympian) at the Miami Rowing Club on
Key Biscayne, FL at the age of 13. At 16 Ben was selected by Paul Podgorski to live in the Olympic Training Center in
Lake Placid, NY, to train fulltime. At 18, Ben started studying Biology at
Dartmouth College in
New Hampshire. At 21, Ben was selected to compete in the
2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
, and represented the USA in the Men's K-1 1000 meter event.
Following graduation and competing in the Olympics, Ben attended
The Wharton School and received an MBA in HealthCare Management. Ben also attended the
University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine for 3+ years (of 4 years) but left early to pursue his entrepreneurial dreams of innovating in animal health. Ben co-founded 4Vets in
Sao Paulo, Brazil, with his Wharton Healthcare Management classmate. 4Vets was sold and Ben returned to the USA and started The One Health Company with his wife, Christina Lopes.
Ben is married with two children.
See also
*
World Fit
World Fit is a program of the United States Olympic Committee (USOC), and the United States Olympians and Paralympians Association (USOP) to promote physical fitness and the Olympic Games ideals to school children through kids fitness programs, ...
References
Sports-Reference.com profile
1982 births
Sportspeople from Miami
American male canoeists
Canoeists at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Living people
Olympic canoeists for the United States
Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States
Pan American Games medalists in canoeing
Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games
Canoeists at the 2003 Pan American Games
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