Earl Young, Olympic Champion and Leukemia Survivor, Releases Book on Oct. 7

‘Gold and Grace’ traces Young’s remarkable life, from winning a gold medal as a teenager to saving lives through blood stem cell donor advocacy

DALLAS, TX, UNITED STATES, October 7, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Earl Young, an Olympic sprinter, businessman and cancer survivor, has entered a final race to save lives. His new book encourages readers to join him on his mission.

“Gold and Grace: The Higher Purpose of an Olympic Champion,” follows the story of Young, who won Olympic gold in 1960 at age 19, appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and embarked on a globetrotting finance career in the oil, gas and precious metals industries. His work abroad led him to serve as director of the Corporate Council of Africa, and he was active with the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Alumni Association, where he helped create a relief fund for Olympians in need.

At age 71, Young was diagnosed with a deadly form of leukemia. Doctors gave him only three months to live without treatment, including a blood stem cell transplant. The odds of finding a donor were one in 22 million. Miraculously, a woman living 5,000 miles away in Germany was a match. She stepped up and agreed to save Young’s life.

After a difficult recovery, Young dedicated himself to passing on the blessings of his donor’s selfless gift. He created Earl Young’s Team, a nonprofit that recruits blood stem cell donors to help others stricken with deadly blood cancers. To date, the organization has registered tens of thousands of donors and facilitated more than 145 matches for patients with life-threatening blood cancers.

Young encourages readers of his book to develop their God-given gifts and find their highest purpose in serving others, just as he has done.

“The best life, I’ve come to believe, is one that makes the most of our God-given gifts to reflect His glory while serving a cause greater than ourselves,” Young writes.

Readers will find important life lessons in “Gold and Grace.” While the story celebrates Young’s Olympic journey, the deeper message is that greatness lies not in standing on the podium, but in the character, discipline and humility built along the way. Young’s battle with leukemia was not the end of his story – it became the beginning of his life’s greater mission. Even the most devastating challenges can be transformed into a higher purpose. And that purpose can change countless lives. “Gold and Grace” inspires readers to live with service at the center of that life, showing up for others with compassion and grace.

Young ends the book with “Stepping Up Stories of Stem Cell Donors and Recipients,” including one about Campbell Fearing, son of prominent Dallas restaurateurs Dean Fearing and Lynae Fearing. As a 22-year-old college student, Campbell was lucky enough to have seven potential blood stem cell donors to cure his leukemia. His medical team chose a donor close to the same age, a college student in New Haven, Connecticut, who had participated in a donor registration event on campus. “If you want to live a life full of impact and purpose,” Campbell says, “[donor registration] is something you should do. … I was going to die and my donor gave a part of himself and saved me.”

“Gold and Grace” is published by Leafwood Publishers, an imprint of Abilene Christian University Press. It will be available beginning Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025. The book will be released initially in softcover and Kindle format. It is currently available for pre-order on Amazon.

Kelly Hunter
Sunwest Communications
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