If you ask five-year Chicago Heights Police Officer Ben Nguyen about his gold medal, he passes it off, giving credit to a detective solving a crime or a firefighter saving someone at Glenwood apartments.

Nonetheless, Aug. 26 through Sept. 5 in New York City, Nguyen was the star of the Heights, showing off the athletic prowess that has made him good at his day job.

Nguyen had his highs and lows in track, but it always kept calling him back.

"I always liked competing and winning," Nguyen said, "I ran track in high school and college. In my senior year of high school, I went down to state, I was disqualified for false start. I stopped running for ten years then picked it up again one-and-a-half years ago."

Nguyen took part in the 2011 World Police and Fire Games, an Olympia-like series of games held every two years. This year, in honor of the 10th Anniversary of Sept. 11, the games were held in New York. More than 70 countries participated with more than 15,000 competitors.  

"It has everything the Olympics has, from archery to cycling, basketball, track, field and more," Nguyen said of the games.

Nguyen was busy that weekend competing in the 100-meter dash, 400-meter dash, 400-meter relay and the 1,600-meter relay. The young officer took first in the 4-by-100 meter relay. He also received bronze medals in the 200-meter sprint and the 1,600-meter relay.

"I was proud to represent Chicago Heights and the United States," he added.

Despite competing against many of the police and firefighters from other countries, Nguyen said he made friends for life.

"We hung out every day for eight hours," Nguyen recalled. "We became good friends. I believe the whole reason for the games is to promote friendships between civil service workers throughout the world. This year was the most participants they've ever had."

A common professional bond was the cornerstone for many of the friendships Nguyen developed.

"It was great to meet other policemen and firemen from other countries," he said. "It's very prestigious in other countries to be the police and fire. It is honorable for them to represent in international games. It seemed more important to them than for the guys in the United States."

Most of the participants brought patches, representing their town and department they work for.  

"When you trade patches with them, they tell you what every marking and color mean," Nguyen added. "You can see how much honor they have. It's not just a job to them.  I enjoyed the guys from Switzerland and Hong Kong. Hong Kong guys brought so much energy. They didn't care if they won or lost, they were just happy to be there and encourage the rest of us."

His fellow officers along with Chief Michael Camilli were proud and supportive of Nguyen.

"They all supported me here at the station," Nguyen said. "They were happy I represented Chicago Heights. I trained for a year, usually running at Bloom High School track. I'm harder on myself, I can always do better." 

Of course, Officer Nguyen's love of running has been a plus in his job, especially when it comes to being able to catch the bad guys. He encourages youth to get involved in running. "Running is the basis for most sports. It's the staple for working out."

The next World Police and Fire Games are in 2013, in Belfast, Ireland. "I'd like to go, we'll see what the funds are like," the young officer said. "There (a competition) in 2012 at Benedictine U.S. Nationals. I want to compete in that."

Nguyen, always careful about how much emphasis he puts on these games, continued to come back to what was most important.

"I don't think it's anything more special than what the civil servants of Chicago Heights do," he said.

Ask him about a day he looks back on as a Chicago Heights police officer, Nguyen said he comes back to the one that made him feel appreciated.

"The police are sometimes treated poorly, more than other professions," Nguyen said. "I was doing foot patrol in the plaza. It was a little girl about four, who was with her mom. She came towards me and said 'Thank you for being a police.' I'll always remember that she acknowledged me.