At age thirteen, when she started ballet, she was already much older than what most age kids normally started at. She took free classes at the Boys and Girls Club, where her talent was soon noticed by Cindy, the owner. Cindy saw the talent and potential that Misty had. “Saw talent that she'd never experienced before, as well as just me, coming from the background I did and not having the best family situation and home. And I think that she saw that ballet was going to create this amazing life for me” (“Misty Copeland Becomes...”). Cindy saw that Misty was doing exceptionally in ballet and started giving her classes. She also took her in, Cindy brought Misty home with her so that she could have the ballet training and experiences she needed. This wasn’t very uncommon, many athletes moved in with their trainers so that they could have more chances. Cindy owned a dance studio and encouraged Misty to have a career in dance. Soon after she started dancing, she was enrolling in competitions. Her first competition was called Los Angelos Music Center’s Spotlight Awards. In this competition, she preformed phenomenal and even won a money prize. “I performed my new piece, my backup plan, and my execution was perfect. I was beaming when I finished, pleased and proud of my performance. I don’t remember much after that, except that I won first place in the ballet category. My prize was $5,000” (Colbert and Copeland 44). After this competition many people started realizing her talent and she began getting offered spots for summer programs. Lots of different schools were not only offering her a spot, but also gave her a scholarship. Although many other people saw her talent there were always those few people who thought she was no good. “I work hard in rehearsals and performances, but that’s not good enough for…
