E:60- Catching Kayla

LINK

I put this on the OT because, while it is an ESPN production revolving around an athlete, I think it's inspirational beyond sports.

quote:

---

Unlike most of her peers, there is a unique factor that separates the 18-year-old from her competition: she has multiple sclerosis, which has caused nerve damage that results in her legs going completely numb when she runs.


“My legs. Where’d they go? Please help me. Please help me find my legs,” she pleas to her coach after collapsing in his arms at the 50-second mark of the “Catching Kayla” documentary.

The moving feature on her life documents the 18-year-old’s transformation over the last few years, from a runner her coach Patrick Cromwell described as just “average” into one of the top young athletes in the country.

---

quote:

---

Like others with MS, heat triggers Montgomery’s symptoms. As her body temperature rises while she runs, her symptoms get worse.

“It usually starts in my toes and works its way up to my waist,” she told ESPN. “It just stays like that for the rest of my run or race.”


“It’s just a very strange feeling,” Montgomery added. “You don’t know what’s going on. You just know it’s happening.”

At the end of each race, she collapses into her coach’s arms. He then immediately provides her with cold water and ices her body.

“I want to get cool as fast as possible so I can feel my legs,” Montgomery explained to ESPN. “I try to, I guess, get it over with as soon as possible.”

The end of “Catching Kayla” shows her win the final race of her high school career. Video of that moment has succeeded in giving “chills” to many who have viewed the clip on YouTube.

“Wow. There are no words I can write here to describe how much this girl inspires me,” one individual commented.

---