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Oct 4, 2008 10:47 pm US/Central
Once-Paralyzed Teen Becomes Marathon Runner
(WCCO)
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"Once I landed, I knew. I could just feel it. I couldn't move anything," recalled Kayla.
CBS
Kayla Roden is a soccer player at heart. She began playing as a little girl, and was on the St. Michael Albertville girl's soccer team until July of last year. That's when Kayla's life changed in a split second.
While playing soccer with friends she tried a cartwheel kick, attempting to kick the ball while her legs were over her head. But Kayla's arms gave out, and she landed on her neck.
"Once I landed, I knew. I could just feel it. I couldn't move anything," recalled Kayla.
Kayla was rushed to the hospital and X-rays showed that her neck was broken. Doctors performed a series of surgeries, but their outlook for Kayla was grim.
"Initially she said, 'Mom, am I going to walk again? I said, 'No you are not.' Everybody else is crying and she's like, 'I'm okay, it will be okay. Whatever happens I will be okay,'" said Kayla's mom, Marita.
Those words may have been the turning point for Kayla. After surgery she could move the toes on her right foot. Then, feeling started to return to the rest of her body. Doctors said that alone was a miracle. But just three days after surgery, Kayla was back on her feet.
"It's just unbelievable. And every day -- I mean as Kayla as young as she is, and I know she knows it's a miracle, but as her parents you just thank God every day," said Marita.
Because of her injury Kayla can no longer play soccer, but she can run. So when a friend asked her to run 10 miles in the Twin Cities Marathon, Kayla was all for it.
"It's going to feel pretty good I guess. (It will) be emotional too though. It is crazy that I am going to be able to do this. It wouldn't have meant much to me before, but now it is going to mean the world," said Kayla.
Kayla is also on her high school's cross-country team this fall. If the race goes well, she says she might run Grandma's Marathon in Duluth next year.
The 17-year-old honor student is still staying busy with soccer even though she can no longer play. She is coaching 6-year-olds in St. Michael.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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