Mizzou’s Megan Cunningham masters her road to recovery
Instead, slowly but painstakingly surely, Cunningham has regained her footing. As the fifth-year senior finishes the final lap in her college career, she's not just competing in races. She's dusting the competition.
"She goes from not being able to do anything, possibly not being able to walk again, to being so determined to walk, then to run," Mizzou's assistant track coach said Monday after a morning practice at
"It's a classic example of someone putting their head down," he continued, "working really hard, taking one day at a time and then, boom, all of a sudden the skies opened up and she was rolling."
On
Luckily, there was a neurosurgeon on staff at the nearest hospital in
"When they brought my phone to me I remember saying I had to text
She suspected others thought it would be impossible to return to the track and someday race competitively. She wasn't about to accept that kind of verdict.
"That was the one positive thing I was holding on to," she said.
While Cunningham slowly recovered from her surgery, Joe's injuries were more severe. The accident left him paralyzed with limited use of his biceps. Denise had to leave her job to become Joe's primary caregiver. For 36 years, Joe worked at
Back in
"The hardest part was I had been in the midst of my highest mileage in summer training (before the accident) and then to not even be able to sit up in bed or feed myself," she said. "Coming back, my legs and arms were fine but my head was really holding me back."
"We took our time," Burns said. "We still do. Even when she warms up and doesn't feel right she knows it right away. We say, 'OK, let's back off and come back in two days to see if we can do this workout.' We've done that a number of times and it's worked well. We've always let her take what her body gives her on that day and make the most of it."
Last spring, Cunningham entered a few races during the indoor track season. Her breakthrough came during the outdoor season at the Drake Relays, where she finished 19th in the 5,000 meters with a personal-best time of 16 minutes, 45.48 seconds. Burns was blown away.
"She still wasn't able to finish many workouts yet," Burns said. "But when she did that we were like, 'Wow!'"
After the season, Cunningham faced a crossroads. She had one year left of eligibility. She could end her track career and move on to graduate school.
"She was running good," Denise said. "But it was time to move on."
The Cunninghams had
"I told my mom if I was going to stay I was going to put everything into it and make it worthwhile," she said.
"She felt she had more in the tank," Denise said. "I think she made the right choice."
That was obvious on
Her comeback story is enough to dazzle a more celebrated teammate.
"Just seeing how hard she works every day in practice," said five-time national champion long-distance queen
Cunningham's inspiration comes from another source. Traveling is difficult for Joe, but he's always on her mind as she's pounding out mile after mile.
"My dad reminds me every day that I'm doing it for fun," she said. "I'm not being paid. I'm not on scholarship. I'm doing this because it's something I like to do and I like to push myself. For me it's great to see the progress and see how I've bounced back from everything. ... If I can do this, he can bounce back as well."
After she runs her final race this summer, Cunningham's off to
Don't bet against her.
"Honestly," Denise said, "I don't think anything can stop this girl. She's unbelievable."
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