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Runner's perseverance reinforces a love for athletics
In my opinion
by Stefanie Loh | Sports Reporter
Okay, I'll admit it. I'm a sap.
A sports sap.
I hopped off my couch and cheered when Pete Sampras beat Andre Agassi in the 2002 U.S. Open to enter his retirement with one final Grand Slam to his name.
I got all light-headed and happy when the U.S. women's soccer team beat Brazil 2-1 in the 2004 Athens Olympics - a fitting swan song for the Old Guard (Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy, Kristine Lilly and Brandi Chastain) as they passed the torch to the next generation.
And I almost got teary when the Ducks women's soccer team beat UCLA 2-1 in the fall with Nicole Garbin's thrilling game-winner in double overtime.
Sports for me is most fun when it unveils a deeper, more meaningful story line.
That's why I was so touched by the tremendous act of courage demonstrated by a Portland Pilots distance runner last Friday at the NCAA West Regionals track meet.
The image that stuck with me when I left the track that evening was one of Portland's Amie Dahnke in the women's 5,000m race, pale cheeks flushed, rail-thin body wavering as she half-jogged and half-stumbled over the finish line - almost two minutes after Stanford's Theresa McWalters' first-place finish.
But the fact that Dahnke had even finished was a miracle in itself.
With five laps to go in the 12 1/2-lap 5,000m race, Dahnke had already fallen at least a half-lap behind everyone else. She was dead last by more than 100m, and she looked wearier by the meter.
At the 4,000m mark, I watched as Dahnke fell farther and farther behind the pack, and I couldn't help but feel bad for her. She was running so slowly she seemed to practically shuffle. Her fists were clenched as she ran, her face was contorted into a grimace. She no longer appeared to be able to run between the lines. Instead, she swayed and wavered into the second lane and looked as if she didn't even know she was there.
"I bet she's gonna drop out," I remarked to a fellow reporter, who nodded in agreement.
A sports sap.
I hopped off my couch and cheered when Pete Sampras beat Andre Agassi in the 2002 U.S. Open to enter his retirement with one final Grand Slam to his name.
I got all light-headed and happy when the U.S. women's soccer team beat Brazil 2-1 in the 2004 Athens Olympics - a fitting swan song for the Old Guard (Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy, Kristine Lilly and Brandi Chastain) as they passed the torch to the next generation.
And I almost got teary when the Ducks women's soccer team beat UCLA 2-1 in the fall with Nicole Garbin's thrilling game-winner in double overtime.
Sports for me is most fun when it unveils a deeper, more meaningful story line.
That's why I was so touched by the tremendous act of courage demonstrated by a Portland Pilots distance runner last Friday at the NCAA West Regionals track meet.
The image that stuck with me when I left the track that evening was one of Portland's Amie Dahnke in the women's 5,000m race, pale cheeks flushed, rail-thin body wavering as she half-jogged and half-stumbled over the finish line - almost two minutes after Stanford's Theresa McWalters' first-place finish.
But the fact that Dahnke had even finished was a miracle in itself.
With five laps to go in the 12 1/2-lap 5,000m race, Dahnke had already fallen at least a half-lap behind everyone else. She was dead last by more than 100m, and she looked wearier by the meter.
At the 4,000m mark, I watched as Dahnke fell farther and farther behind the pack, and I couldn't help but feel bad for her. She was running so slowly she seemed to practically shuffle. Her fists were clenched as she ran, her face was contorted into a grimace. She no longer appeared to be able to run between the lines. Instead, she swayed and wavered into the second lane and looked as if she didn't even know she was there.
"I bet she's gonna drop out," I remarked to a fellow reporter, who nodded in agreement.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Travis
posted 5/31/07 @ 10:08 AM PST
You hit the nail right on the head. Amie's determination to finish showed that she had the heart of a champion and that is what we all strive to achieve in running. (Continued…)
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