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Amy Van Dyken-Rouen's biggest step

It's Walking Wednesday for Amy Van Dyken-Rouen.

She's seated in a sunny corridor, an enclosed pedestrian bridge that spans Third Avenue in Phoenix. She is a lifelong athlete, a dominating force who has risen to every physical challenge ever put in front of her.

She's wearing a Hello Kitty T-shirt.

Time to do this thing.

"I'm well-rested," she says. "I've gotten a lot of sleep the past few days." Today's a good day for walking.

There was a time when it would have been hard to imagine a simple walk would be a challenge for Amy — that's the Amy Van Dyken, the one who was an Olympic champion, a six-time gold medalist.