Seize the day!

At the age of 9, Runyan was diagnosed with Stargardt’s disease, a juvenile form of macular degeneration, the leading cause of legal blindness in the U.S. Her vision has deteriorated to 20/400 in both eyes classifying her as legally blind...As a child, Runyan competed in gymnastics and soccer until she just couldn’t see the ball anymore…she then started participating in track and field, where she excelled in high jump in high school and picked up the heptathlon in college at San Diego State...twice nationally ranked in the top 10 in the heptathlon, she placed 10th at the 1996 Olympic Trials…at the trials Runyan broke the heptathlon 800m record with a 2:04.70, convincing her to drop the heptathlon and train for mid-distance. She disappeared from the track scene for two years after the Trials, having knee and foot surgery, and reappeared in 1999 in dramatic fashion by winning the Pan American Games 1,500…she competed in the 1999 World Outdoor Championships, where she placed 10th in the final...in 2000, she won her first national title indoors at 3,000 meters.

The dream

You can’t talk about the Olympic Games without first talking about the journey that got you there.  For me, the 2000 Sydney Olympics holds a special place in my heart.  It was my first Olympic Team, and the realization of a dream that began 12 years before. 

In 1988, I was a freshman at San Diego State University.  I was recruited as a high jumper, and had cleared 5 feet 9 inches that season.  One afternoon at track practice, after watching hours of the Seoul Olympics on television, I marched right up to my high jump coach and said, “How can anyone be in this sport and not want to be in the Olympics?’  While I couldn’t see his face, I knew he was smiling.  “I don’t know, Marla,” he said. “That’s a good question.  Everyone would like to be in the Olympics.” 

 “Well, I want to be in the Olympics,” I said, “and I can’t do it in the high jump.  I want to try the heptathlon.”  I was certain my coach was trying not to laugh.  “The heptathlon!”
he exclaimed.  “Marla, you have to throw the shot put, the javelin, learn to long jump, run the 200-meters and 800-meters, and…..Marla, you have to hurdle.  Can you even see a hurdle?” 

Well, that was sort of a problem.  Standing at my starting blocks, I couldn’t look down the straightaway and see all 10 hurdles.  I saw one.  I figured I would see the next one after I cleared the first, and so on.  I didn’t see those hurdles, but I ran over them.  I didn’t believe my vision interfered with my ability to be an athlete.  I never believed it slowed me down.