Marla Runyan: A Visually Impaired Athlete Marla Runyan is a world-class track and field athlete, who competed for the United States Olympic Team in 2000. She also happens to have Stargardt’s disease, which makes her legally blind. Marla once said, “If I break a national record, maybe they will stop writing about my eyes” (LaFontaine 228).
There are 285 million people that are visually impaired in the world (WHO). Of those people, 248 million have low vision and thirty-nine million are blind (WHO). The causes of blindness fall into two categories: natural causes and environmental causes. Some natural causes of blindness are cataracts, (Landau 20), glaucoma (16), and macular degeneration (22). Environmental causes of blindness can occur from exposure to chemicals (30) and sharp objects puncturing the eye (29). Stargardt’s disease is categorized as a natural cause of blindness. It affects approximately one in ten thousand people in the United States. This inherited type of juvenile macular degeneration causes progressive vision loss that cannot be corrected with eyeglasses (Runyan). Some people that are visually impaired will need help with mobility such as using a guide cane or dog (Marcovitz 45). Blind people can read by feeling braille (45) or using a large magnifying lens (Abbey 93). Additionally, barcode scanners (Marcovitz 80) and people taking notes for blind students (Newsmakers) are other forms of help. Sadly, the challenges of being visually impaired or blind can be intimidating. Not only can their personal mobility and freedom be limited, but they also face discrimination and cannot work in certain jobs (Marcovitz 53). Marla’s vision started deteriorating at age nine and at age eleven, she was officially diagnosed with Stargardt’s disease (Abbey 91), When she was diagnosed, people’s expectations of her lowered both academically and athletically. In grade school, she was involved in gymnastics and soccer, but she was forced to quit these sports since she was no longer able to see the ball (LaFontaine 229). To cope with her disability, Marla began to run track in high school (LaFontaine 229). She started specializing in high jump and still maintained a “spotless academic record” (Newsmakers). At school, when she could not see the board or had trouble taking notes, Marla would hire a student to take notes for her or she would just record the lesson and take notes later (Newsmakers). Marla Runyan is so much more than just …show more content…
“She is not going to be able to do this, she’s not going to be able to do that. He was making predictions on how I would function: I would become a C student. I don’t want to blame him, but he was really speaking beyond his scope” (VLR). Marla is talking about how her doctor was predicting the future for her. By telling Marla that she couldn’t do certain things that she could before, he was motivating her to do better. “ I remember becoming very angry. It kind of became the fire to motivate me” (VLR). She wanted to prove him wrong. Marla’s parents helped Marla overcome her disease by letting her try new things. “They were leaving the door open to just kind of go for it. They knew I might not always succeed, but they let me do that” (VLR). In some ways, adversity can serve as motivation and inspiration. Marla continues to serve as an inspiration to others by making appearances as a motivational and keynote speaker
There are 285 million people that are visually impaired in the world (WHO). Of those people, 248 million have low vision and thirty-nine million are blind (WHO). The causes of blindness fall into two categories: natural causes and environmental causes. Some natural causes of blindness are cataracts, (Landau 20), glaucoma (16), and macular degeneration (22). Environmental causes of blindness can occur from exposure to chemicals (30) and sharp objects puncturing the eye (29). Stargardt’s disease is categorized as a natural cause of blindness. It affects approximately one in ten thousand people in the United States. This inherited type of juvenile macular degeneration causes progressive vision loss that cannot be corrected with eyeglasses (Runyan). Some people that are visually impaired will need help with mobility such as using a guide cane or dog (Marcovitz 45). Blind people can read by feeling braille (45) or using a large magnifying lens (Abbey 93). Additionally, barcode scanners (Marcovitz 80) and people taking notes for blind students (Newsmakers) are other forms of help. Sadly, the challenges of being visually impaired or blind can be intimidating. Not only can their personal mobility and freedom be limited, but they also face discrimination and cannot work in certain jobs (Marcovitz 53). Marla’s vision started deteriorating at age nine and at age eleven, she was officially diagnosed with Stargardt’s disease (Abbey 91), When she was diagnosed, people’s expectations of her lowered both academically and athletically. In grade school, she was involved in gymnastics and soccer, but she was forced to quit these sports since she was no longer able to see the ball (LaFontaine 229). To cope with her disability, Marla began to run track in high school (LaFontaine 229). She started specializing in high jump and still maintained a “spotless academic record” (Newsmakers). At school, when she could not see the board or had trouble taking notes, Marla would hire a student to take notes for her or she would just record the lesson and take notes later (Newsmakers). Marla Runyan is so much more than just …show more content…
“She is not going to be able to do this, she’s not going to be able to do that. He was making predictions on how I would function: I would become a C student. I don’t want to blame him, but he was really speaking beyond his scope” (VLR). Marla is talking about how her doctor was predicting the future for her. By telling Marla that she couldn’t do certain things that she could before, he was motivating her to do better. “ I remember becoming very angry. It kind of became the fire to motivate me” (VLR). She wanted to prove him wrong. Marla’s parents helped Marla overcome her disease by letting her try new things. “They were leaving the door open to just kind of go for it. They knew I might not always succeed, but they let me do that” (VLR). In some ways, adversity can serve as motivation and inspiration. Marla continues to serve as an inspiration to others by making appearances as a motivational and keynote speaker