Female Kenyan Runner Collapses During Marathon | Gets Back Up, Crawls & Finishes 3rd

So inspiring!

A 29-year-old Kenyan marathon runner, Hyvon Ngetich, took part in the Austin Marathon on Sunday. She was in the lead, and on her way to winning the race, but all of a sudden, with just two-tenths of a mile left to run, her body began to break down. She subsequently collapsed, Huffington Post reports.

Unable to walk or run, medical personnel offered Ngetich a wheelchair, intending to take her off the tracks. Determined to finish the race, she declined and proceeded to crawl to the finish line. She eventually finished in third place.

Austin Marathon race director John Conley was so impressed by her determination, that he rewarded her by increasing her prize money to that of a second-place finisher.

Referring to Ngetich as the toughest person on the planet, Conley said, “You ran the bravest race and crawled the bravest crawl I have ever seen in my life,” he told her. “You have earned much honor.”

Watch the video of Ngetich’s tenacious crawl to the finish line:

Photo/Video Credit: CBS News/Youtube