NARRATIVE: In 1982, Charles "Charlie" Sampson was the first African American to win a world title in the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association (PRCA). As a young boy growing up in Los Angeles, California, Charlie had a love of horses and would sneak past the neighborhood gang members with his cowboy clothes in a bag to visit the stables he discovered in downtown LA. The wranglers there taught Charlie how to ride and saw that he had real potential. Small in stature (5 feet, 4 inches tall), but large in spirit and determination, Charlie pursued his dreams and became a pioneer in the sport of bull riding, and a highly decorated and recognized rodeo icon.

"I didn't know I was gonna be a bull rider. ...I wasn't big enough to play basketball, or fast enough for football. But I came to love this sport. You can't out muscle a bull. But deep down I knew I could conquer that animal once I got belief, a positive attitude, strength and the ability to react in split seconds." – Charlie Sampson