Woman with One Leg Seeks to Run 102 Marathons in 102 Days
2022-04-24
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1A woman who lost one leg to cancer is seeking to break a world record by completing 102 marathon-length runs in 102 days.
2A marathon is a race that goes 42 kilometers.
3Jacky Hunt-Broersma, who lives in the western American state of Arizona, set her goal in mid-January.
4And every day since then, she has been running the distance of a marathon.
5Most of the time, she runs on roads and trails near her home in Gilbert, Arizona.
6Sometimes she completes her runs on a running machine called a treadmill.
7Hunt-Broersma averages just over five hours to complete the runs.
8If she keeps successfully completing marathon-length runs every day, she will reach her goal by April 28.
9She would then hold the world record for completing 102 back-to-back marathon runs.
10The current world record of 101 marathons was set April 10 by British runner Kate Jayden.
11The 35-year-old Jayden does not have a disability.
12Hunt-Broersma, a native of South Africa, lost the bottom half of her left leg to a rare form of cancer in 2001.
13"The biggest struggle was accepting that part of my body was gone," she told The Associated Press.
14Hunt-Broersma said that until five years ago, she was not very active.
15But then she looked into running and decided to give it a try.
16The sport ended up being quite costly. Currently, she runs on a prosthetic leg made out of a strong, light material known as carbon fiber.
17The carbon fiber blade she uses, which is designed specifically for running, costs about $10,000.
18But Hunt-Broersma says her investment has been well worth it.
19"Running really changed my life," she said.
20"It helped me accept myself as an amputee. It gave me a sense of freedom. I fell in love with the process of pushing my body further just to see what I could do."
21However, she has faced both physical and mental difficulties during her record-breaking attempt.
22On one recent day, Hunt-Broersma said she felt near collapse at 24 kilometers and began to cry.
23In that moment, she felt like her planned goal might not happen at all.
24"I had a total emotional breakdown. I was like, 'I just can't do this. What was I thinking?'" she said.
25"The trick for me is just to break it down into little goals, she added.
26One of her recent runs was the world-famous Boston Marathon in Boston, Massachusetts.
27She finished that race, held April 18, with a time of 5 hours, 5 minutes.
28Hunt-Broersma's main support team is her husband and their two young children.
29She is documenting her progress online and has also gained a large social media following.
30As she nears the end of her goal, Hunt-Broersma is hoping to inspire a single thought in others, regardless of their own physical limitations.
31She tells people, "You're stronger than you think - and you're capable of so much more."
32I'm Bryan Lynn.
1A woman who lost one leg to cancer is seeking to break a world record by completing 102 marathon-length runs in 102 days. A marathon is a race that goes 42 kilometers. 2Jacky Hunt-Broersma, who lives in the western American state of Arizona, set her goal in mid-January. And every day since then, she has been running the distance of a marathon. 3Most of the time, she runs on roads and trails near her home in Gilbert, Arizona. Sometimes she completes her runs on a running machine called a treadmill. Hunt-Broersma averages just over five hours to complete the runs. 4If she keeps successfully completing marathon-length runs every day, she will reach her goal by April 28. She would then hold the world record for completing 102 back-to-back marathon runs. 5The current world record of 101 marathons was set April 10 by British runner Kate Jayden. The 35-year-old Jayden does not have a disability. 6Hunt-Broersma, a native of South Africa, lost the bottom half of her left leg to a rare form of cancer in 2001. "The biggest struggle was accepting that part of my body was gone," she told The Associated Press. 7Hunt-Broersma said that until five years ago, she was not very active. But then she looked into running and decided to give it a try. The sport ended up being quite costly. Currently, she runs on a prosthetic leg made out of a strong, light material known as carbon fiber. The carbon fiber blade she uses, which is designed specifically for running, costs about $10,000. 8But Hunt-Broersma says her investment has been well worth it. "Running really changed my life," she said. "It helped me accept myself as an amputee. It gave me a sense of freedom. I fell in love with the process of pushing my body further just to see what I could do." 9However, she has faced both physical and mental difficulties during her record-breaking attempt. On one recent day, Hunt-Broersma said she felt near collapse at 24 kilometers and began to cry. In that moment, she felt like her planned goal might not happen at all. 10"I had a total emotional breakdown. I was like, 'I just can't do this. What was I thinking?'" she said. "The trick for me is just to break it down into little goals, she added. 11One of her recent runs was the world-famous Boston Marathon in Boston, Massachusetts. She finished that race, held April 18, with a time of 5 hours, 5 minutes. 12Hunt-Broersma's main support team is her husband and their two young children. She is documenting her progress online and has also gained a large social media following. 13As she nears the end of her goal, Hunt-Broersma is hoping to inspire a single thought in others, regardless of their own physical limitations. She tells people, "You're stronger than you think - and you're capable of so much more." 14I'm Bryan Lynn. 15The Associated Press reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. 16We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. 17________________________________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19trail - n. a path through the countryside, often where people walk 20prosthetic - n. an artificial body part, such as an arm, leg, or foot, that replaces a missing part 21blade - n. a flat, sharp piece of metal that can be used as a tool or weapon 22amputee - n. a person who has had an arm or leg cut off 23inspire - v. to make someone want to do something 24capable - adj. able to do something