College runner wins race after losing shoe
Who needs a sneaker? Not Liam Purdy! He wins the 800 for @AUeagles at @PatriotLeague Championship. @BillSpaulding with the great call! pic.twitter.com/SkIJcXD8Gm
— PatriotLeagueNetwork (@PatriotLeagueTV) February 19, 2017
Liam Purdy ran into some terrible luck at the Patriot League Indoor Track and Field Championship on Sunday when he lost one of his shoes mid-race, but remarkably, he went on to win the 800-meter final.
The trouble started after another runner accidentally stepped on Purdy's heel, causing the back of his shoe to become tucked under his foot, according to Dan Steinberg of The Washington Post. Purdy, a junior at American University, was eventually able to get the shoe off by flicking his right foot backwards and ran the remainder of the race barefoot.
"I remember thinking to myself, 'Wow, I don't feel any pain at all!'" Purdy said. "'I'm gonna get out of this scot free! I am ok!' I didn't feel anything."
There was some damage done to his foot, though. Here's what it looked like after the race:
@SportsCenter @AUeagles @espn @PatriotLeagueTV in case anyone wanted to know the aftermath pic.twitter.com/joSYRdtwKi
— Liam Purdy v4.0 (@GrandMastaPurdy) February 20, 2017