LaFond has dedicated herself to a grueling training schedule, which included practicing the triple jump in the snow at 8 p.m., but said she couldn't have done it without God and the people who have been praying for her.

Hundreds of priests and bishops filled the Rouen cathedral along with many hundreds more people, including Muslims who have joined in the grieving since the murder of the 85-year-old priest.

"Panama, with its canal, is a bridge between two continents, and we'll also make it a symbolic bridge between young people, especially in Latin America," said Cardinal Jose Lacunza Maestrojuan of David, Panama.

The Italian bishops' conference advised all pilgrims who visited or attended events at its Casa Italia center in Krakow to see a doctor.

"We're looking for the most focused ways the parish can support the rebuilding, both financially as well as material support."

His life and death underscored the suffering of Aleppans, whose city was once the commercial center of Syria with a thriving, unique culture but has now been torn to pieces by fighting.