Just do it!!

As we went through the warm-up ritual we follow before every sled workout, Jason, Alex and I couldn't help but notice a young man arriving at the track. We noticed him because he was wearing a single sporting prosthesis just below his right knee. Prior to that moment I had only seen Oscar Pistorius and others wearing their prostheses in news articles and photos. The articles are usually part of the discourse around the "unfair advantage" these athletes would have were they to compete against the able-bodied. Ridiculous. How quickly would these people change places with said able-bodied runners!

I couldn't stop watching him - he ran with a stride I could only envy, and boy is FAST! Wearing a "Canada" shirt, I could only assume he was one of our paralympians. He inspired me - made me push the sled all the harder. I left the field with a smile on my face, feeling uplifted by what I had seen. I needed to know, who was this guy? What's his story? Had I guessed right about his Olympian talents? A few hours later I had my answers - Jackie Marciano is a 22 year old sprinter who had lost his leg at age 9. He was/is a natural, having been discovered by a running coach while he was out jogging. According to one article I found, Jackie's deadlift max is 450lbs!!! This is a feat for an able-bodied man, few of them able to come close.
I was/am still smiling. He has a FB page, so I just sent him a note wishing him the best in his running career and telling him how much he has inspired me. :-)

More Jackie...http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/story/2011/11/02/ns-nova-scotia-parapan-american-games.html?cmp=rss