A most unusual cross country running team

Sami Stoner from Lexington, Ohio doesn’t expect to cross the finish line first. She is just happy that she is allowed to compete.

She loved running cross country in junior high, but in the eighth grade she began losing her vision.

When her family finally got the diagnosis it was a worst case scenario. She had inherited Stargardt disease, a form of macular degeneration that strikes children and teens leaving them legally blind, with only some peripheral vision.

The road to competitive running has not been easy. After receiving Chloe, a Golden Retriever, from Pilot Dogs in Columbus, the two needed to get conditioned to long distance running. Cross country running can be difficult even for a runner with eyesight. Uneven ground, roots, sticks and stones along the way can cause injury.

Then they had problems getting a waiver from the Ohio State High School Athletic Association. Finally they agreed with certain provisions that provided for the safety of Sami, Chloe and the other runners:

[Sami] has to wait 20 seconds after the start of the race before she can run. That's to assure the dog doesn't get spiked or inadvertently knock another runner over. She can pass other runners, but she can't impede them with the dog. She is to be a non-scoring competitor, and if finish chutes are deemed too small, she cannot cross the finish line with the dog for the same reasons she can't start with the field.

Sami, now 16, readily agreed to the provisions: "I don't run for time or place or anything. I run because I love it," she said.

Which is what high school sports should be about, but sadly, sometimes is not. The story

Comments

[Khyra]

How pawesome!!!

Hugz&Khysses,
Khyra

[CandiRae]

Wow! Good for Sami! She's an inspiration (and her dog) to not let obstacles stand in the way of achieving dreams!

[Jet]

Those provisions sound a bit anal to me. The sighted runners cannot avoid the dog but they can avoid roots and rocks? Phoey.

It is a great guide dog story though1

[Trixie, Lily and Sammy-Joe]

We like this story, but our Mama says she agrees with Jet. Sami has a special need ( and the school should be providing accomodations to make sure she has equal opportunities to her peers... not putting more limitations in her way! Having Sami start running twenty seconds later than the others could be necessary for safety, but they should still time her and allow her to compete! Awesome that her assistance dog is able to help her run the course!

[threecollie]

What a great story!

[Dennis the Vizsla]

For some reason I am thinking of the movie "Breaking Away". Only with runners instead of bicyclists. And a dog.

[jackie]

what an inspiration

[Sherry in MT]

That ROCKS!

[cube]

Poor child. My heart goes out to her. I was a runner in my youth, and my eldest was a cross country runner in high school. I'm glad she's able to run because once a runner, it's hard to not run. Thank goodness for Chloe.